


The Akuma Effect

by adoribiliusKermode, ThatsAStepLadder



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Future, F/F, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Future, Future Fic, Major Character Undeath, Minor Character Death, Off-screen Relationship(s), Post-Apocalypse, Time Shenanigans, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It, Unrequited Love, eh kinda, this is meant to be performed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-01
Updated: 2018-02-01
Packaged: 2018-08-16 23:32:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 17
Words: 19,264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8121832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adoribiliusKermode/pseuds/adoribiliusKermode, https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatsAStepLadder/pseuds/ThatsAStepLadder
Summary: Georges Lahiffe lives in an imperfect world-a world where, twenty years ago, a boy, a girl, and their two friends fought and defeated a villain-with devastating effects that resonate twenty years earlier. Everyone is content, but no one is satisfied. But this is the only world he has ever known. He shares it with his parents Alya and Nino, his two friends Louis and Henri, and his crush-the vindictive and toxic Emma Agreste. But things are changing now, and Georges's universe is suddenly torn apart. He's soon thrust into a world of time-travel, timelines, city-destroying apocalypses, and…romance?Emma Agreste seems to have it all: two loving parents, two loving brothers, a kickass modeling gig, a full squad of friends who love and defend her, a fancy mansion in the middle of Paris-not to mention a pair of earrings which can basically flip the bird at The Law of Conservation of Mass. Before her world is changed and shifted forever, the worst of her troubles is getting that cutie Georges Lahiffe to notice her. And then everything has to completely fall apart. She escapes her destroying universe, recruits the help of an alternate Georges (who has a crush on her?) and tries to rewrite her destiny.





	1. Dramatis Personae

Georges Lahiffe-13-17. The current/future Chat Noir. Aspiring rapper and budding poet. Has a passionate, creative, romantic side, yet also very loyal to those he cares about. The right brain of the Chat Noir/Ladybug Duo. It is imperative to use a non-white, non-asian actor to play Georges.

Emma Agreste-13-17. The current/future Ladybug. A confident fashion model without any of the empty space in the skull. A get-the-job-done kind of girl, always willing to put the mission first. She still does have a sensitive side that certain people in her life can break into. The left brain of the Chat Noir/Ladybug duo. If possible, use a hapa actor to play Emma.

Adrien Agreste-13-17/27-35. Emma’s father and former Chat Noir. As a teen, a bright young lad, who is committed to both his own happiness and the protection of Paris. As an adult, someone who’s very dark and sullen, resigned to his fate of a life of being controlled by others. This is one out of five characters who will need two actors to perform.

Marinette Dupain-Cheng-13-17/27-35. Former Ladybug. As a teen, the girl next door who never hurt a fly in her life, always inspiring people to do the right thing. As an adult, she’s a loving mother and a supportive wife. This is one out of five characters who will need two actors to perform. If possible, use an actor of asian or hapa descent to play Marinette.

Nino Lahiffe-13-17/27-35. Georges’s father and current Carapace. This is one out of five characters who will need two actors to perform. It is imperative to use a non-white, non-asian actor to play Nino.

Alya Cesaire-13-17/27-35. Georges’s mother and current Rena Rouge. This is one out of five characters who will need two actors to perform. It is imperative to use a non-white, non-asian actor to play Alya.

Gabriel Agreste-35-50/65-70. Adrien’s father, Emma’s grandfather, and the former Hawkmoth. The big bad of the play, but can’t exactly be called evil per se. This is one out of five characters who will need two actors to perform.

Emilie Agreste-65-70, Adrien’s mother, Emma’s grandmother, and the former Peacock miraculous holder.

Rose Lavillant-27-35. The homeroom teacher for the Collège Françoise Dupont Class of 2040, and a constant font of exposition.

Louis Agreste-13-17. Marinette’s adopted son. The current Hawkmoth, depending on the timeline. Has wildly different personalities, depending on the timeline. If possible, use an actor of asian or hapa descent to play Louis.

Nathaniel Kurtzburg-27-35: Marinette’s husband.

Chloe Bourgeois-27-35: Adrien’s wife.

Henri Lavillant-13-17. Rose Lavillant and Juleka Coffaine’s adopted son. The current holder of the bee miraculous, depending on the timeline.

Camille Kurtzburg-13-17. Nathaniel and Chloe’s daughter.


	2. PART 1, ACT 1, SCENE 1-GEORGES’S ROOM AND THE COLLEGE FRANÇOISE-DUPONT, GEORGES’S UNIVERSE, 2035

PART 1, ACT 1, SCENE 1-GEORGES’S ROOM, GEORGES’S UNIVERSE, 2035

(The lights turn on to reveal Georges Lahiffe, sleeping in bed. He is a boy of fourteen, maybe fifteen, no older than seventeen. His bed is kept and well made as he lies in it. His room, however, is a different story.)

Nino (from offstage): Georges! Rise and Shine! First day of High School!  
Georges: Is it worth it? I have to be in the same room with Emma Agreste for eight hours.  
Nino: You have a crush on her, right?  
Geroges: EXACTLY.

(Nino enters from left. He is no longer the gangly, turtle-nosed boy we’ve seen in the show, but a man in his thirties dressed in a turtleneck and jacket. He walks over to Georges’s bed.)

Nino: It could be worse.  
Georges: Could it, though?  
Nino: Besides, there’s gonna be that gala tonight. You wanna be up for that, right?  
Georges: The opening of Cheng/Agreste?  
Nino: Yep.  
Georges: Meh. I don’t know, man.  
Nino: Well, Louis and Henri are gonna be at school.  
Georges: I’m sold.

(Georges gets out of bed, and Nino exits from where he came. The bed slides away to reveal a semicircle of desks. On one side is a whiteboard, and a few students are already inside: College Francois-Dupont, 2035. Georges stands in the middle of the stage until Henri Lavillant walks in from left, and hugs Georges. He’s a boy around Georges’s age, the adopted son of Juleka and Rose Lavillant.)

Georges: Henri!  
Henri: Georges! How are you, man?  
Georges: I’m doing good, how was your summer?  
Henri: Oh, wow, it was nice! Me and my moms went to Martinique for the summer, it was great. How was yours?  
Georges: An internship at the Paris Opera, went to New York and saw that Hamilton revival. That and the summer homework.  
Henri: That seems busy.  
Georges: Busier than it seems.  
Henri: At least you don’t live with one of the teachers…  
Georges: That’s actually a good thing. You get all the help you need.

(Louis Kurtzberg enters from left. He’s a tall, nervous looking boy, the adopted son of Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Nathanael Kurtzberg. He looks at the two boys and his nervous look breaks into a small smile.)

Henri: Louis!  
Louis: Oh-hello!  
Georges: How was your summer?  
Louis: Oh, it was…it was good! I did…things.  
Georges: Are you going to that function?  
Louis: Well…I kind of have to…so, yeah!  
Henri: Wow, I’m so jealous! Wish I could come with you guys.  
Georges: Dude, you think it’s gonna be so fun. It’s going to be boring as hell.  
Henri: What about all those cute models that are going to be there?  
Georges: Okay, Okay, true. I see your point. But still, I have to listen to Adrien make a speech. That's going to so so fun.  
Henri: Not so boring when you realize his daughter is going to be there.  
Geroges: She’s my crush!  
Louis: Really? Emma Agreste? Ugh, I…I would avoid her at all costs. Yeah, she’s hot, George, but that girl is a-

(As if on cue, Emma Agreste strides in confidently with poise and confidence from left. Georges stares at her with a lovestruck look on his face.) 

Georges: Emma…I…

(Emma walks up to the boy, takes one look at him, and slaps him across the face without another word.)

Georges: Ow!  
Henri: EMMA! Not cool!  
Emma: Did you see the way he was staring at me? Now THAT’S what I’d call not cool. Honestly, the guy’s some sort of fucking retarded perv-  
Henri: He’s not, and even if he was, this gives no NO license to slap him. He might be a ‘fucking retarded perv’ but he’s a fucking retarded perv that also happens to be my friend.  
Emma: Jesus, Henri. I didn’t know you could be such a mama bear. That’s Alya’s job.  
Louis: You’ve beaten me into submission, and Geroges is such a lovestruck idiot to do anything about it, so…so Henri has gotta take a stand.  
Emma: Oh, boy. You’re just like your mother, except a thousand times weaker, and without a coat worn by Gigi Hadid.  
Louis: I…I could say the same about you.  
Emma: I’ll take that as a compliment. Aren’t you adopted anyway, Henri? You don’t even have a dad, so no wonder you’re a little bit confused as to where you wanna stick your-

(Henri flings himself at Emma; Georges and Louis hold him back. As a calming presence, Rose Lavillant, now the history and homeroom teacher at the College Francois Dupont, enters from right.)

Rose: Is there…something I’ve interrupted?  
Henri: No…mother-I mean, no, Mme. Lavillant.  
Rose: Good. I would hate for anything eventful to happen before the school year has even started. We haven’t gotten on each other’s nerves yet. Henri, if you’re going to be that belligerent, I might have to have a talk with your mother.  
Emma: Yes, you certainly will.  
Rose: Oh. And you, Mme. Agreste. I was classmates with your mother, and from what I’ve heard from the Middle School teachers, you take after her more than your father. If you act like your mother, attack anyone for something they cannot help or control, or try to vex me in any way, then I will take personal pleasure in sending you to Principal Bustier’s office. That goes out to everyone, by the way, including Senator Bourgeois’s granddaughter.

(Rose moves to the head on the class (stage left) and the students take their seats; Louis and Georges sit down next to each other; Henri on the adjoining column upstage, Emma behind Henri.)

Rose: Alright. To start your interest in history, we’re going to open up a unit on recent events, to put our place in history into perspective. Can some of you tell me some events of historical importance that happened since…2000?

(A number of students raise their hands.)

Rose: Yes. Alessandra?  
Alessandra: 9/11.  
Rose: A tragedy. Louis?  
Louis:…The Arab Spring?  
Rose: Yes. Some more positive events? Catherine?  
Catherine: The iPhone 1 release.  
Rose: Certainly. Hubert?  
Hubert: The Korean Unification.  
Rose: Yes. The end of fifty years of hostilities. Henri?  
Henri: The Miraculouses?  
Rose: The Miraculouses…Yes. I was about your age when they were around. Ladybug, Chat Noir, Volpina, Jade Turtle, Nite Owl, and Hawkmoth. Yes, even Hawkmoth.  
Henri: What else did we know about them?  
Rose: Well, we know their powers. Volpina created illusions. Nite Owl could travel in time. Chat Noir could destroy anything with touch of his hand. Hawkmoth, the problematic one, could give people superpowers. It happened to me once. I’ll show you a picture of ‘Princess Fragrance’ if you guys want. It’s on an outdated JPEG, though, so I’ll have to print it out.  
Marie: Where are they now?  
Rose: After Hawkmoth was revealed to be the fashion designer Gabriel Agreste, the Miraculouses became…lost. They were hidden. Perhaps the struggle of a miraculous was too hard for one group to take. About a year after, the group…fell apart. We didn’t see Ladybug or Nite Owl anymore. Then the rest of the group began to disband. Some people say that Jade Turtle is still active.

(A bell can be heard ringing.)

Rose: And that’s Mendeleiev’s class. Make sure to get on her good side, I certainly didn’t.

(Exeunt and Blackout.)


	3. PART 1, ACT 1, SCENE 1-GEORGES’S ROOM AND THE COLLEGE FRANÇOISE-DUPONT, GEORGES’S UNIVERSE, 2035

(The lights come up to Nino Lahiffe, Alya Cesare, and Georges Lahiffe entering from right. There is a podium upstage center that is currently unoccupied. Adrien, Gabriel, Emma, and Chloé are upstage left, Marinette, Louis, and Nathanael are downstage right. Spotlight on the Lahiffes.)

Nino: Are you working tonight?  
Alya: Yes, I’m covering the event. Can’t you see my notepad?  
Nino: Pay some attention to your friends that goes beyond ‘a scoop’.  
Alya: Come on, you know me better than that.  
Nino: And that’s why I love you. Georges, there’s Louis over there.  
Alya: I think he can see his friends.  
Nino: And his crush.  
Alya: I don’t usually judge my son’s love life, but I, for one, don’t want Emma Bourgeois as a daughter-in-law.  
Nino: Emma Bourgeois? Don’t you mean Emma Agreste?  
Alya: I refuse to such a sweet man could sire someone so vile. Ergo, I’m using the mother’s last name.  
Georges: You know I’m still here?  
Alya: Listen, Georges: there are plenty of good women in the sea, and if you’re anything like your father-  
Nino: Don’t listen to mom. I never dated until Alya came along, and even then, we took a break in college.  
Alya: Ugh, don’t remind me. That brief fling with Kim-thank god he’s playing football for Switzerland and he’s nowhere near Paris.  
Nino: There’s Marinette. I hope she’s Okay.  
Alya: Let’s go to her. Marinette!

(Spotlight on the Lahiffe family fades. Spotlight on the Dupain-Cheng-Kurtzberg clan.)

Nathanael: Are you sure you’re all right?  
Marinette: I appreciate the concern, my love. But I’m fine.  
Nathanael: But he-  
Marinette: Are you jealous?  
Nathanael: No. No.  
Marinette: Because you shouldn't be. I was a stupid girl with a stupid crush. He took away something which would have been important to me, and-and any guy stupid enough to marry Chloé Bourgeois doesn’t deserve my time. You meanwhile…you’re a handsome artist with exhibitions running at the MoMa and the Pompidou.  
Nathanael: But you’re an award-winning designer who’s been worn by North West and Blue Ivy.  
Marinette: But you’re married to your high school crush.  
Nathanael: But you’re married to your college sweetheart.

(They kiss, and hold that kiss until Marinette notices her best friend.)  
Marinette: Alya!  
Alya: Marinette!

(Alya and Marinette hug. Marinette hugs Nino, Nathanael hugs Alya and brofists Nino. Louis and Georges brofist. Marinette looks wistfully into the distance, specifically upstage left.)

Alya: Homegirl. Don’t look at him. He is just a stupid douchebag that brought his creepy old douchebag father and bitchy douchebag wife and their spoiled douchebag daughter to the gala.  
Nino: My wife, as always, is right. Adrien’s like a brother to me, but…he did make some questionable decisions after the whole Nite Owl debacle.  
Marinette: I don’t understand. Why’s Gabriel here? Didn’t the board fire him for being…you know, Hawkmoth?  
Alya: And why shouldn't he be here? He DID found the company.  
Marinette: But he nearly drove it into the ground.  
Nino: He did it for good reasons. Would you not do the same for Nathanael? I know I’d do the same for Alya.  
Marinette: Yes...(beat)...yeah, I would. But he didn’t have to militarize children or manipulate emotions like that. He could have asked.  
Alya: And Fu would have just let him do that? Yeah, I don’t think that would be on the table. Resurrection is a risky business.

(Marinette is still looking at the Agreste family with a mix of wistfulness and rage.)

Nino: Mari? You’re looking at them again.  
Alya: Okay. Okay. You want to talk to them so badly, huh? Yo! Hawkmoth! Pretty Boy!  
Nathanael: Alya, no!  
Alya: Yeah, and Bitchface, and Bitchface the second! Over here! Someone I’d like you to see!  
Marinette: Alya, it’s fine! You’re making a scene…

(The entire Agreste clan, and the entire reception looks at Alya. There’s dead silence. First Chloé, then Emma, then Gabriel, and finally Adrien go to downstage right. Louis and Georges run over to their families, ready to defend them.)

Louis: Is everything all right?Georges: Emma! I…apologize for my mother.  
Emma: No, I fully understand. She told us her emotions perfectly.  
Alya: Georges! Wine privileges for a week for apologizing to an Agreste!  
Marinette: I have never asked to be a part of this narrative.  
Chloé: My, my. Can’t your son apologize to my daughter? Your pride and capacity for a grudge truly knows no bounds. Your tact, however…  
Gabriel: To be fair to Chloé, Georges did have every right to apologize for your behavior, Volpina. No need to chastise the boy.  
Alya: Oh, yeah, because you Agrestes know so much about apologizing and owning your shit.  
Gabriel: Careful, now. I still have Nrouo…  
Alya: And I still keep Trixx around my neck. Let’s go, old man. Pick your champion.  
Adrien: Father! Chloé! Alya! Please! This is a night for me and my wife and Marinette. Check your past aggressions at the door.

(Adrien pushes aside his father, wife, and daughter, to face Marinette. She finds an apparent interest in the floor, before looking up at him with cold fury.)

Adrien: Marinette.  
Marinette: How has your been night so far?  
Adrien: It’s been good.  
Chloé: We’re not done here, Dupain-Cheng! I know you’ve settled for the consolation prize, but I still have my-  
Marinette: Nathanael is a catch, Chloé. I will defend my husband to the ends of the earth, because I genuinely love him, instead of whatever twisted BS you’re doing with Adrien. But I’m going to be the better woman here, and turn the other cheek.  
Alya: Besides, we have Hawkmoth in our company. It would be a shame if your night were to get ruined by an akuma.  
Marinette: What are you doing here, Hawkmoth?  
Gabriel: For my son. And because I started this company.

(Chloé walks over to Marinette’s side, and pulls Adrien along with her.)

Chloé: Because you started Gabriel. And that company is dead and gone because you thought that stealing miraculouses would be a good hobby, and now Cheng/Agreste stands in it’s place. And you are here, Hawkmoth, because of the fact that we will it.  
Marinette (whispering): Capricious, aren’t you?  
Chloé (hissing): Shut up! You just suck less than Hawkmoth over here!  
Marinette (whispering): Whatever.  
Adrien: She’s right. Chloé, Marinette and I are a united front. And I’m sorry if your life is difficult without Mom, but-  
Emma: Father? Having the Lahiffe boy fawn over me has lost its luster. May I please head out?  
Adrien: Fine. Now, as I was saying…

(Emma, Louis, and Georges slip out of the adult conversation.)

Georges: So what in the hell was that?  
Emma: Ask your mom. She started it.  
Louis: She has a point, dude. As…as much as I hate to admit it!  
Georges: It really sucks.  
Emma: To be you? Yeah. You’re the worst at having crushes and hiding them. So painfully obvious…you know I WOULD date you, right? Your dad is a platinum recording artist.  
Georges: And that’s why I’m not dating you. You’d use me, just like your mom and dad.  
Emma: But you have a crush on me, all the same. Y’know, I hear Alessandra Rossi likes you. Is she not cute enough for you, or you don’t like the easy lay?  
Georges: It’s not about getting laid. It’s about…it’s about something different. Like we’re fated to be together!

(She exits down right, cackling to herself.)

Louis: You kind of screwed that up.  
Georges: I know. Still, it’s not worth it.  
Louis: Ugh. I wish Henri was here to roast her.  
Georges: What? You wish that?  
Louis: Not…not really.  
Georges: Ah, whatever. I wish something would happen. Maybe I should be Chat Noir. I want the ring, man!  
Louis: You must destroy the ring!  
Georges: It is a gift to men, why not use it?Louis (ham acting): Aaaaaahhhhhh-  
(They both end up laughing)  
Georges: Did you ever want a brother?  
Louis: You wish. My mom and dad say it was hard enough adopting me, so no chance.  
Georges: So…was it mom or dad who had trouble?  
Louis: Mom. At the clock tower, she took a fall as Ladybug, and it…broke something. They say Adrien could have saved her, I’m not sure.  
Georges: So that’s why she’s scared around Adrien.  
Louis: Yeah. I don’t like talking about it.  
Georges: I’m sorry. Should we go back?  
Louis: Sure!

(They walk to center stage, where a crowd is gathering. Adrien, Chloé, and Marinette are all standing at the podium.)  
Adrien: It’s with great pleasure and joy I announce the creation of the next phase of Agreste Fashions: Cheng/Agreste. When this company was started by my father in 1997, it was supposed to be a gen-x answer to the baby boomer fashions of Calvin Klein and Yves-sant Laurent. Since then, Gabriel has challenged dramatically. We have had the creations of several rival companies around the world, appealing to a younger audience of both the masses and a new generation of artists. We’ve had to face the firing of the man who created it all, we’ve had to face the accusations of child labor in our primary facilities in Calcutta and Model Exploitation on our catwalks. But now, we need a fresh start, a new lease on life, to turn back the clock, and start from the basics: fashion and-

(The skies rumble, and lightning begins to flash. Cracks begin to appear on the ground. Emma, dressed as a combination of Ladybug and Nite Owl enters from left.)

Emma: Georges?  
Georges: What are you doing, Emma?  
Emma: We have to go. Now. This timeline of reality is breaking apart, and you will cease to exist if you don’t help me.  
Georges: I don’t understand.  
Emma: Come with me. We need to go!

(She grabs his hand and pulls him off to upright, into the Seine River. Blackout.)


	4. PART 1, ACT 2, SCENE 1-EMMA’S HOME AND THE COLLEGE FRANCOIS DUPONT, EMMA’S UNIVERSE, 2035

(The lights turn on to reveal Emma Agreste, sleeping in bed. She is a girl of fourteen, maybe fifteen, no older than seventeen. Her room is well-kept and well made, her bed is the same state of perfection. Enter Louis Agreste. He is her brother, about the same age as her. He is perfectly dressed. He walks over to her, and pokes her repeatedly.)

Louis: Emma. Emma. Emma. Wake up.  
Emma: Louis! You know how much I-  
Louis: Blame mom.  
Marinette (from offstage): Emma! Louis! Hugo! Breakfast is ready! Come on, before your metro leaves!  
Louis: You’d better hurry. 

(Exit Louis to downstage right. Enter Marinette.)

Marinette: Emma, you’re going to be late.  
Emma: So what? Maybe I shouldn't go to the College at all.  
Marinette: Is it boy troubles?  
Emma: And if it is?  
Marinette: You, young lady, have nothing to worry about. You're a model. In fact, if you’re anything like your mother, you’ll have boys circling around your feet before the year is out.  
Emma: But it’s…a very specific boy.  
Marinette: We wouldn't be talking about Georges Lahiffe, now, would we?

(Emma looks at her mother with an expression of pain.)

Marinette: It sounds vaguely familiar. I’ll tell you a story of another girl similar to you.  
Emma: O…kay.  
Marinette: But…only if you go to class-  
Emma: Fine.  
Marinette: Give my regards to Rose and Principal Bustier-  
Emma: Seems reasonable.  
Marinette: And have one thirty-second conversation with Georges.  
Emma: M-mom, I can’t just-  
Marinette: I have complete faith in you. Now go!

(Marinette pushes Emma off the bed, giggling. Emma wanders downright.)

Marinette: And don’t forget Tikki! You’ll need her tonight!  
Emma (offstage): Got it!

(The scene changes from that of Emma’s room to the classroom, as we saw in Act 1. Enter Emma from right. Rose Lavillant is taking notes on the whiteboard. Louis follows Emma a short while later.)

Louis: I just dropped Hugo off at the Lycée.  
Emma:…Good.  
Louis: Emma, you’ll do fine.  
Emma: I’m still scared! Don’t you feel that way when a cute boy walks into the room?  
Louis: Yeah, I guess I still feel nervous. But you’re a lot more attractive than I am! That’s why I stay backstage while you hog all the glory.  
Emma: You’re pretty attractive.  
Louis: Thank you.  
Emma: Wait!

(Emma adjusts a butterfly-looking brooch on Louis’s shirt )

Emma: There we go. It was a little out of place.  
Louis: Thank you.  
Emma: Did you feed Nooroo?  
Louis: Yes. But it’s hard going into the wine cabinet every night to feed him. All you have to do is ask for bread, and boom! Mom’s life-giving manna.  
Emma: Mom and Dad know you’re Hawkmoth.  
Louis: The name’s Mariposa now. Grandfather ruined the name Hawkmoth. I had to do a little corporate rebranding.  
Emma: Fine then. Mariposa.

(Enter Camille Kurtzberg and Henri Lavillant from left into the classroom.)

Camille: …and I said: ‘If you really want a girl like that, you should take fifteen euros, go to the Marais and see what it has to offer!’  
Henri: You didn’t have to be that harsh. Oh, hi Emma!  
Camille: He didn’t have to be that much of a slut. Emma, darling! How are you?  
Emma: I’m doing good, thank you.  
Henri: Camille, that audition-  
Camille: I got in, thank you very much.  
Emma: Oh, which part?  
Camille: I’m Olivia.  
Emma: Really? I got Viola.  
Camille: I can’t wait to kiss you onstage.  
Emma: I’m already taken, don’t spread your feathers just yet, Paon.  
Camille: A crush doesn’t mean a boyfriend, bugababe.

(As if on cue, Georges Lahiffe walks in from left, an offstage spotlight shining from behind him. He sits down at his desk and takes out a notebook.)

Louis: Emma-he’s here.  
Emma: Oh. Oh god.  
Henri: Get em, Emma.  
Emma: No, what if he hates me already? I don’t have my makeup on right, or maybe I don’t-

(Camille pulls out Emma offstage left. She returns with Emma five seconds later.)

Camille: Your makeup is FINE. And don’t doubt me or my credentials, I was taught by a master.  
Louis: Chloé's eyeshadow is too heavy, and she uses way too much foundation, but fine, I guess.  
Camille: Don’t sass me, Louis Agreste!  
Louis: Don’t be so easy to sass. I’m just telling the truth.  
Camille: Touché. Touché, she hella does.  
Henri: We’re using ‘hella’ now? Your mom never should have let you do that summer program in San Francisco.  
Camille: Emma. I’m going to call him over. Any famous last words before I do anything?  
Emma: Camille!  
Camille: Okay, your last words were my name. Fair enough. Georges!

(Georges looks up and cracks a wide grin, before walking over to the other four members of the squad. Emma looks at him, her mouth gaping open, before beginning to faint. Georges catches her by the arm, holding her up by the armpits like a rag doll. He helps her back to her feet before steadying her with his hands on her hips. A.N.: This version of Georges DOES NOT have a crush on Emma, and the director and actor playing Georges should make that abundantly clear.)

Georges: Woah! You Okay there?  
Emma: Y-yeah-I-I suddenly felt better when you caught me!

(Camille bursts out laughing.)

Georges: Yeah…I guess…Well, you-you didn’t fall.

(Georges touches her face with the back of his hand. Camille, Louis, and Henri are struggling to hold her laughter)

Emma: Georges…I…  
Georges: Your face feels warm. Do you have a fever?  
Emma: Uh….  
Georges: Emma. Are. You. Okay?  
Emma: Y-yes! Yes, I am!  
Henri (whispering): So, does she have the HOTS for him?  
Camille (laughing): Henri, that pun was awful.  
Georges: I…I…You’re fine? I mean, from…like, illness and stuff.  
Louis (giggling): My sister thinks the same thing of you!  
Emma: Yeah. You’re fine. I MEAN-I’M FINE!  
Henri: So. Does the ship sail itself?  
Camille: YES.  
Georges: Ship? What ship?  
Camille: Nothing, nothing.  
Louis: Should we get to our seats?

(They go to their seats; as if on cue, the bell rings. Rose walks to stage right.) 

Rose: Alright. To start your interest in history, we’re going to open up a unit on recent events, to put our place in history into perspective. Can some of you tell me some events of historical importance that happened since…2000? 

(Several students raise their hands.)

Rose: Yes. Camille?  
Camille: 9/11.  
Rose: A tragedy. Louis?  
Louis:…The Arab Spring?  
Rose: Yes. Some more positive events? Catherine?  
Catherine: Hamilton. The musical?  
Rose: Certainly. Hubert?  
Hubert: The Korean Unification.  
Rose: Yes. The end of fifty years of hostilities. Henri?  
Henri: The Miraculouses?  
Rose: The Miraculouses…Yes. I was about your age when they were first active. Ladybug, Chat Noir, Volpina, Jade Turtle, Queen Bee, Paon, Nite Owl, and Hawkmoth. Yes, even Hawkmoth.  
Henri: What else did we know about them?  
Rose: Well, we know their powers. Volpina created illusions. Nite Owl could travel in time. Chat Noir could destroy anything with touch of his hand. Hawkmoth, the problematic one, could give people superpowers. It happened to me once. I’ll show you a picture of ‘Princess Fragrance’ if you guys want. It’s on an outdated JPEG, though, so I’ll have to print it out.

(Camille chuckles and raises her hand, Henri gives her a death glare.)

Camille: What happened to them?  
Rose: Well, if you listen to the local news; they made a recent comeback, although it seems as if these are new people, protecting a new generation of Paris.

(Rose taps away at what looks to be a small watch on her arm. Camille and Henri sit up with pride.)

Rose: Ever since a year ago, the heroes came back. First, we saw a male Queen Bee, who called himself Yellowjacket, with a female Paon, who referred to herself as Madame Peacock. If I might be honest, that renaming isn’t too creative.

(Camille lets out a small humph.)

Rose: Then, Ladybug and Chat Noir came back, helping Yellowjacket and Madame Peacock from stopping a bomb from going off in the National Assembly. Finally, three months ago, a boy calling himself Mariposa started wearing the butterfly miraculous. He was taken into custody for obvious reasons, before finally being released after the authorities declared him not a threat to the people of Paris. He’s since joined the new miraculous team.

(The bell rings.)

Rose: See you fifth period! You have…Mendeleev’s class. Make sure to get on her good side, I certainly didn’t.

(Exeunt. The scene changes to a Paris rooftop, and Camille, Henri, Louis, Emma, and Georges are onstage.)


	5. PART 1, ACT 2, SCENE 2-EMMA’S ROOM, EMMA’S TIMELINE, 2035

(Enter the Miracusquad 2035 stage right, starting with Emma and Camille, followed by Georges, Henri, and Louis.)

Camille: Stay: I prithee, tell me what thou thinkest of me.  
Emma: That you do think you are not what you are.  
Camille: If I think so, I think the same of you.  
Emma: Then think you right: I am not what I am.  
Camille: I would you were as I would have you be!  
Emma: Would it be better, madam, than I am? I wish it might, for now I am your fool.  
Camille: O, what a deal of scorn looks beautiful in the contempt and anger of…OF…fuck my life, I hate theater.  
Emma: Relax. The first rehearsal doesn’t start until October. I’m surprised you’re this far ahead.  
Camille: Of course. Henri, do you wanna take me home?  
Henri: But of course.

(Exit Camille and Henri stage left.)

Georges: Uh…Emma. I…guess I’ll be off!  
Emma: Y-yeah. Yeah, I guess. See you soon.

(Exit Georges stage left.)

Emma: Mom, I’m home!

(Enter Marinette. Louis detransforms.)

Marinette: Emma! Louis! How was patrol?  
Louis: We caught a burglar. I had to akumatize a cop.  
Marinette: I’m so proud, Louis. Is everyone more or less settling in with Mariposa?  
Louis: Yes...well. There were a few people who were...throwing things.  
Marinette: Oh, baby! Are you all right?  
Emma: Do we know them from school?  
Louis: N…no. And I’m fine. I’ve dealt with worse.  
Marinette: If something happens-tell the others about it, alright?  
Louis: Yes.

(Exit Marinette, leaving a fuming Emma and a snickering Louis.)

Louis: So…we left you and loverboy to patrol for about two hours-

(Emma looks at Louis, walks over to him, and gives him a haymaker across the jaw.)

Louis: OW!  
Emma: WHY? You know I hate it when we’re paired up! And Camille, with her shit-eating grin-  
Louis: Did you make out?  
Emma: NO! He…he was so…AUGH! He’s just like dad! With all his puns, and I think he was flirting with me-and he smelled so nice, like sandalwood or some musk, and he gave me his latest poem which was a fucking love sonnet, thank you very much-  
Louis: Well, you do remember the Ladybug and Chat Noir prophecy. Ladybug and Chat Noir always doomed to pine for each other, caught in a love that may envelop them in the throes of passion~  
Emma: That’s not how it goes!  
Louis: But still-he might like you.  
Emma: Yeah. Maybe Chat Noir likes Ladybug…but Georges certainly doesn’t like me. He always called me a friend!  
Louis: You might be surprised!  
Emma: Not in this timeline.

(Louis walks over to the edge of stage left and looks back at Emma.)

Louis: Don’t give up the good fight. Okay?  
Emma: Yeah, yeah.

(Exit Louis. Emma flops down onto her bed. The lights dim and Emma climbs into bed ever so quickly, almost scared. A spotlight opens from stage right and Nite Owl runs in.)

Emma: Who are you?  
Who are you?  
Emma: I asked first.  
Nite Owl: I’m Nite Owl. I have a miraculous, see? I can time-travel!  
Emma: What do you want me to do? What are you doing here?  
Nite Owl: We don’t have much time. I’ll give you the gist. I’ve created a point of departure where Adrien Agreste rejected Marinette Dupain-Cheng, and everything is about to change. This timeline is going to be destroyed in a few minutes. Take my miraculous. Go back to 2016. Find Ladybug and Chat Noir. Kill Hawkmoth.  
Emma: What? Marinette and Adrien are my parents!  
Nite Owl: What? Oh, hell.  
Emma: You BASTARD! What did you do?  
Nite Owl: TAKE THE MIRACULOUS! It can protect you, but you have to go to 2016! Now!  
Emma: What about you?  
Nite Owl: Don’t worry about me.  
Emma: Wait-I have-so many questions!

(But it’s too late. Nite Owl puts their watch on Emma and sets it to 2016, before punching the watch. They remove their coat and goggles and puts it on Emma, before backing away. The lights begin to dim, and the stage begins to go black.)

Nite Owl: Godspeed, miss.  
Emma: WAIT!

(Blackout.)


	6. PART 1, ACT 2, SCENE 3-A ROOM IN THE AGRESTE MANSION, GEORGES’S TIMELINE, 2016

(Enter Emma from stage right. She runs upstage and hides as Adrien and Gabriel enter from stage left. They have gotten closer from the first POD.)

Gabriel: Son, I don’t know why you’re so worried about this. There are plenty of fish in the sea, and if you’re anything like your father…well. You’re a model. I don’t see why you should be so distraught.  
Adrien. Maybe. But I don’t like the thought of leaving Marinette like that. Maybe I should invite her back, for closure.  
Gabriel: Are you still friends?  
Adrien: W-well, I think we both made that clear.  
Gabriel: Then it’s unnecessary. You’re already friends!  
Adrien: But-it feels wrong, in some way.

(Adrien and Gabriel sit down together on the couch, as father and son.)

Gabriel: Well, if you feel you truly need to clear the air, then perhaps you should talk.  
Adrien: Did you…have any trouble with girls before you met mom?  
Gabriel: I admit, I never really paid attention to girls, your mother was the social butterfly. But…I knew the one when I saw her. And I hope you have the same insight. Speaking of which, you said you liked someone before. Who was she?  
Adrien: You’d laugh.  
Gabriel: Chloé Bourgeois is a fine choice, alth-  
Adrien: No! No, not-not Chloé.  
Gabriel: Who is it? I promise I won’t laugh.

(Adrien sighs.)

Adrien: It’s Ladybug. The superhero. We met during the Jacady incident, and-something changed. I had always accepted the fact that I’d date Chloé sooner or later, and I just wasn’t looking forward to that, but then, with Ladybug-I wanted to be with her.  
Gabriel: So it’s just a crush on a girl in latex?  
Adrien: N-no! Not necessarily! It…it’s more than that. Deeper than that. Like she and I-we’re fated to pine for each other. Like with you and mom. Don’t you ever get the feeling?

(Gabriel smiles at the irony.)

Gabriel: That comes with the assumption that she likes you.  
Adrien: And I feel like she does! It’s-it’s an off chance, I admit, but I feel like I have a ghost of a chance with her-  
Gabriel: Adrien.  
Adrien: Father?  
Gabriel: If you truly feel that way…I suppose I could arrange a meeting. I’ve been feeling rather guilty about the way I’ve treated you as of late, ever since what happened with mother, and-I want to rebuild what we’ve lost. And if this is the first step, then I’d be more than willing to take it.  
Adrien: Thank you, father.  
Gabriel: Now, why don’t you go ahead and call up Marinette. If you still want to.

(Adrien is about to leave, and then pulls his father into a hug. Gabriel tentatively hugs back. Adrien releases the hug and escapes to stage right. Gabriel sits up.)

Gabriel: Now, as you can see, Ladybug, this does give me a conflict of interest.

(There’s no response from Emma.)

Gabriel: Now, now, Ladybug. I’m calling a truce. Just get out from under there, and we can talk.

(Emma slowly gets out of her hiding place and goes downstage. Gabriel transforms into Hawkmoth, and stands up.)

Gabriel: How did you find out that I was Hawkmoth?  
Emma: I…I always had my suspicions, but Nite Owl put them to rest.  
Gabriel: So Nite Owl sold me out. I should have guessed. You’re wearing their Miraculous.  
Emma: She gave it to me.  
Gabriel: I always thought torture and murder were beneath you. Did you dye your hair? You look pretty as a blonde.  
Emma: Let’s get to the topic at hand.  
Gabriel: I think there’s more than meets the eye, here. And I think that you came without backup.  
Emma: Wanna bet?  
Gabriel: As a matter of fact, I do. But I digress. Ladybug. Did you wish to parley?  
Emma: No.

(Emma lunges at Gabriel. They fight.)

Gabriel: What is this?  
Emma: You can’t-  
Gabriel: Are you…trying to stop Nite Owl’s intervention? My apologies, but you’re a little late for that. I’ve already ordered them back in time. It’s a stable time loop.

(Enter Adrien as Chat Noir.)

Adrien: Well, well, well, I’ll have to SEW this up and put someone under AGRESTE-Wait. My Lady? Hawkmoth? I don’t understand-  
Gabriel: Help me, Chat Noir. It seems as if Ladybug has decided to end this prematurely.  
Adrien: But you’re the enemy.  
Emma: Da-Chat Noir! Hawkmoth is Gabriel Agreste! Help me!  
Adrien: Father?  
Gabriel: Adrien? Is it really you? Oh god, I’m so sorry! I was just trying to-  
Adrien: Ladybug, Hawkmoth has been a friend, all this time. This is good news!  
Emma: This changes nothing.  
Adrien: Don’t you see? He’s a friend, and a fellow miraculous holder! We should tell Fu, he would know what to-  
Emma: He’s your father. Fine. He’s also a bastard.  
Adrien: Let’s just see what he wants-  
Emma: He wants something that requires a little more than a ring and a pair of earrings.  
Adrien: You’ll never see his side, won’t you?  
Emma: No.  
Adrien: What do you want, Father?  
Gabriel: Adrien, if I bring together the Ladybug and Chat Noir miraculouses, then-I have godlike power in my hands. I can bring your mother back.  
Adrien: Ladybug...Is this true?

(Emma shrugs and nods: yes, she knows this, but that isn't the whole story. She has no choice but to concur)

Emma: That isn't the whole story, Adrien. There needs to be a sacrifice-come on, equivalent exchange. Only death can pay for life. Please, see sense. Hawkmoth has to take a life in order to give life.  
Adrien: I don't see it that way. Ladybug, you knew. You knew and you kept it from me!  
Emma: Do you want someone to die? Because that's the only way it happens!   
Gabriel: I...I want to find another way, Ladybug. Another way I can save her without taking a life. I know I can. If you'd only trust me.  
Adrien: Yeah, I know. Father.  
Gabriel: I know you'd see things my way, son. And the first step is to take the miraculouses. Both of them.  
Adrien: Yes, father. I know what to do.

(Adrien takes out his weapon and slowly advances on Emma. Emma backs away, fiddling with her miraculous…)

Gabriel: Adrien. Adrien! Wait! Her miraculouses! Make sure you spare her! Jesus Christ, Adrien, I don’t want to kill children!  
Adrien: They’ll be spared.  
Emma: Wait! I thought you loved her! I thought-  
Adrien: I changed my mind.

(Emma slams the miraculous.)

Emma: Allonz-y!

(Blackout.)

Emma (from offstage): Georges?  
Georges (from offstage): What are you doing, Emma?  
Emma (from offstage): We have to go. Now. This timeline of reality is breaking apart, and you will cease to exist if you don’t help me. This is my fault, and I need your help.  
Georges (from offstage): I don’t understand.  
Emma (from offstage): Come with me. We need to go!


	7. PART 2, ACT 1, SCENE 1-THE PLACE DE LA CONCORDE, PRE-POD, 1793

(Enter Emma and Georges, shivering, entering from down-left. Upstage, a guillotine hangs in the distance, with a crowd circling around the guillotine. It is the midst of the French Revolution, and the guillotine is about to claim it’s next victim: the deposed King Louis XVI. He enters from up left, and moves to the guillotine.)

Georges: Okay, I know you don’t like me, and I know my crush on you is unreciprocated, but that gives you no right to swoop in as Ladybug AND Nite Owl, and- and throw me into the SEINE!  
Emma: Considering the fact that I had to get you out of your destroying timeline-  
Georges: Alright, back up. Timeline?  
Emma: Yes. Timeline. Your timeline is gone. That version of time - Marinette and Nathanael, Adrien and Chloé, whatever was happening in that messed-up dumpster fire? That timeline is gone.  
Georges: Okay, you've just insulted everything I've ever known, for good and for ill, but I’ll indulge you. What timeline exists now?  
Emma: We’ve arrived to a time before any point of departure exists-in this case, 1793, the French Revolution.  
Georges: So… why here? Remember, I’m a person of color, didn’t everyone own slaves?  
Emma: It’s fine. It’s the first republic; no slaves in France. People probably assume you’re a free citizen - a product of the revolution.  
Georges: Well, that’s good. W-why 1793?  
Emma: Admittedly, it was at random, but it does provide a teachable moment. See that guy up on the scaffold?  
Georges: Yeah?  
Emma: That’s King Louis XVI. He’s going to die in a few moments. Now, imagine, if you will, that I leaped up to the guillotine, saved his life, and took him on a carriage to a place where people don’t want to kill him. If I went back to my time, then everything could change. Remember: no revolution means no Napoleon, which means no Congress of Vienna- you understand?

(Georges and Emma look at each other, awkwardly.)

Georges: What did you mean, ‘your fault’?  
Emma: I… I changed the timeline.  
Georges: What do you mean?  
Emma: I created a point of departure that wiped out your version of reality.  
Georges: You mean- my time got-  
Emma: Yes, your timeline got destroyed, or changed in a fundamental way. Probably back to my timeline, or changed in some other way. Either way, we need to hurry back to 2035 sooner or later-  
Georges: You mean- my timeline is gone?  
Emma: Yes. I’m… Georges, I’m sorry. I need to get back to my timeline. It’s… it’s probably better than yours, if it’s any consolation-  
Georges: But just because it might be better doesn’t make it MINE!

(Georges skinks to his knees as he realizes everything he ever has known is gone- gone from the past, present, and future. Louis is gone. Henri is gone. Emma, HIS Emma, for all intents and purposes, is gone.)

Georges: Is it all gone?  
Emma: Georges… I’m so sorry. This is all my fault. I was just trying to get back home…  
Georges: I’m sorry-  
Emma: No, it’s fine. You have every right to be mad at me.

(There’s a long pause. King Louis puts his head through the pillory of the guillotine.)

Georges: So…  
Emma: Crush.  
Georges: What?  
Emma: You mentioned you had a crush on me!  
Georges: Well… of course! Everyone knows that! Don’t you tease everyday for that?  
Emma: No- I would never-  
Georges: I don’t know what’s going on.  
Emma: Listen. I don’t know what I was like in your timeline-  
Georges: You… you weren’t Marinette’s kid. You were Chloé’s.  
Emma: Chloé? But she’s so nice! She was the Queen Bee of our timeline! You mean she didn’t even get her Miraculous at all?  
Georges: No. My Chloé is - was a cruel bitch. And… so were you, in my timeline. And I had a crush on you. Maybe I thought I could change you, make you better.  
Emma: Georges, I’m sorry. But I’m Marinette’s daughter here. And I don’t want to change.  
Georges: Maybe I don’t want you to change.  
Emma: Oh! Um…yeah! I, uh, GUESS that’s a good thing - should we… go?  
Georges: Go where?  
Emma: Back to the future. We need to see exactly what I did-and hopefully, get you a Chat Noir Miraculous.  
Georges: I get the Miraculous?  
Emma: Yes. In my timeline, you do.  
Georges: I always wanted to be Chat Noir.  
Emma: OK. Now we gotta go back to the future to get it.  
Georges: Wait. You keep saying the words, “Back to the Future,” so I’m obligated to make at least one reference.  
Emma: Really? You’re going there? Now?  
Georges: It’s like Beetlejuice. If you say its name three times, it’ll magically show up in front of you.  
Emma: Fine, get it over with so we can fix things.  
Georges: Thank you. Here goes: Whoa. Wait a minute, Emma. Are you telling me you built a time machine… out of a wristwatch?

(Emma lets out an exasperated sigh before responding.)

Emma: The way I see it, if you’re going to build a time machine into a piece of jewelry, why not do it with some style? There, are you happy now?  
Georges: Very.

(Emma fiddles with the Miraculous, grabbing Georges’s hand.)

Emma: This? Oh… I… need to do this. To… make you travel too.  
Georges: Oh, that’s… that’s good. That’s fine.

(Emma slams the Miraculous. Blackout.)

Emma: Allons-y!


	8. PART 2, ACT 2, SCENE 1-A CITY SQUARE IN ORLEANS, HAWKMOTH’S TIMELINE, 2035

PART 2, ACT 2, SCENE 1-A CITY SQUARE IN ORLEANS, HAWKMOTH’S TIMELINE, 2035

(Enter Adrien from right, who walks to the center of the square, where he admires a statue of Ladybug.)

Adrien: My lady? I’ve moved uptown. It’s quiet up there. I never liked the quiet before. Yes, I still have my room with my dad, but I keep my own place. I manage. I work with a modeling agency, so I can live that way. You know, I quite liked the way your statue is… it’s fitting. For all that Theo did, he certainly made an impressive likeness of you. Yeah, I’m doing good, and I hope you are too. It’s… pretty lonely, in fact. I still hang out with Nino and Alya, and I guess Chloé’s grown up a little bit. I still have friends. Nope, still don’t have a girlfriend. I guess that’s a problem? I don’t know. Maybe I’m fated to pine for you. Ha, I guess maybe being an old bachelor is my punishment for-you know. Don’t be like that. It’ll ruin the mood. Maybe I never deserved you, maybe you’re right. But if I could go back, or-or switch places, with you standing here, free, and me up there on that pedestal - I swear, Marinette - but I-I’m content. I’m content with staying by your side, and that’s enough for me. God, I miss you. I still do. It has been 17 years, ten months, three weeks, and two days, but- I still miss you.

(Enter Emma and Georges from stage left, detransformed.)

Georges: So what do we do?  
Emma: Seek out Nino Lahiffe, your dad. He’s the Grand Guardian now, after Master Fu retired. If anyone knows who or where the Miraculouses are, it’s him. We go in, get the Chat Noir miraculous, then head right back for 2016.  
Georges: Where do we start?  
Emma: Social Media. Facebook, Tumblr, SeeChange, Transparenci - then we go from there.  
Georges: So. Are internet cafes going to be the name of the game?  
Emma: Perhaps. How much money do you have on you?  
Georges: I have about… fifteen francs?  
Emma: Francs?  
Georges: Yeah, Francs. You… didn’t have the EU breakup? 2027? Any of that ringing a bell?  
Emma: Nope. My world is more politically united than ever before, now that it’s common knowledge the world has eight wearable weapons of mass destruction. We even got Britain back into the fold.  
Georges: So you still have euros?  
Emma: Yeah.  
(Emma turns to Adrien)  
Emma: Sir-could you tell us what year it is?  
Adrien: Wha? Yes. Of course. 2035.  
Emma: DA- Adrien Agreste?  
Adrien: Yeah?  
Adrien: Yeah? Emma: It’s a pleasure. The name’s Emma. What are you doing here? Adrien: I… I moved. Away. I’m living in Orleans now. You…do know you’re in Orleans, right?  
Emma: Orleans? Not Paris?  
Adrien: You mean you don’t know what happened to Paris?  
Emma: N-no!  
Adrien: You mean you don’t know the thing that turned the whole city into a big lake?  
Emma: What do you mean, ‘an inland sea’?  
Adrien: It doesn’t matter anymore. The french government moved to Orleans. It’s the new capital.  
Emma: Tell me!  
Adrien: Something happened-a buildup of something-and it all came to a head on the sixteenth of march, 2020. Something happened to Paris - all of the Ile-de-France, really - and the whole thing collapsed into a sinkhole. It filled with water from the Seine. The whole city-all those people-  
Emma: How, why?  
Adrien: You- you know about the Miraculouses? The Kwami?  
Emma and Georges: Yes!  
Adrien: When-when the Chat Noir and Ladybug kwami combine, they form the Lion Kwami-and that’s bad news. The combination - it forms probability bombs in the area. That’s what caused the events of 3/16.

(Georges and Emma stare at Adrien in amazement.)

Adrien: You don’t believe me.  
Emma: I don’t know what to believe.  
Georges: Are you married?  
Adrien: No! I… never married.  
Emma: What about Marinette? Marinette Dupain-Cheng? Famous designer?  
Adrien: No… miss, Marinette Dupain-Cheng has been dead for twenty years. She was the last Ladybug. Killed by Chat Noir at the battle of the Agreste Mansion.  
Georges: But what about… Nino Lahiffe? EDM musician? Married to Alya Cesaire?  
Adrien: They’re not married. They broke up nineteen years ago. Do you mind? I’m… trying to have a moment.  
Georges: Wait! So… Nathanael Kurtzberg?  
Adrien: How do you know Nathanael? He died at 3/16.  
Emma: Chloé Bourgeois?  
Adrien: The chairman for Bourgeois Hotels, how do you know her?

(Emma pulls Georges aside. Adrien slips offstage.)

Emma: This is bad. Really bad. As in, we might fade into existence bad. As in, everyone dies, bad.  
Georges: Yeah… and Louis is gone as well.  
Emma: Louis? I mean, that’s a given, but-  
Georges: Are we talking about the same Louis? Louis Kurtzberg? Marinette’s son?  
Emma: Uh… no. I was talking about Louis Agreste. My brother.  
Georges: You’re an only child.  
Emma: No I’m not. I have Louis and Hugo-  
Georges: Hugo?  
Emma: Who’s Louis’s dad in your timeline?  
Georges: Nathanael.  
Emma: Figures.  
Georges: But you changed the timeline again, it seems.  
Emma: And… we’ve apparently travelled in space, too, to Orleans. The Owl Miraculous moves you in space if you can’t find firm ground…so Paris isn’t an option.  
Georges: Wait.  
Emma: What?  
Georges: We need to go back to the past-  
Emma: But we need the Chat Noir miraculous, first!  
Georges: Your grandfather. He has to have them.  
Emma: Yeah. If he’s still around.  
Georges: Your dad would know. He’s the key!

(Exeunt.)


	9. PART 2, ACT 2, SCENE 2-ADRIEN AGRESTE’S HOUSE, ORLEANS, HAWKMOTH’S TIMELINE, 2035

PART 2, ACT 2, SCENE 2-ADRIEN AGRESTE’S HOUSE, ORLEANS, HAWKMOTH’S TIMELINE, 2035

(Enter Adrien, Emma and Georges following him from right. Gabriel and a woman are already inside.)

Adrien: I’m sorry, but I’m done with the Miraculouses, with being Chat Noir.  
Emma: I don’t want you to be!  
Adrien: So you want it for yourself? As if I’d tell you where they are!  
Emma: I don’t want to know-

(The three stop and pause as they look at the couple already inside. Gabriel Agreste and his resurrected wife are there, drinking cups of tea.)

Adrien: How did you-  
Gabriel: Spare key card under the doormat.  
Woman: We just wanted to-  
Adrien: Not interested.  
Gabriel: That is your-  
Adrien: My what? My mother? The woman who exonerated the man who submerged Paris? That’s no mother of mine.  
Georges: Wait. Mother? You’re Isabelle Agreste?  
Isabelle: Yes.  
Adrien: You- you wanna know why Hawkmoth did the things he did? The reason is sitting in front of me. Tell me, father, was it worth it, destroying Paris?  
Gabriel: Please. You clearly don’t know the value of sacrificing for the ones we love. I would destroy the world for the woman I love. Would you would do the same for Mari-  
Adrien (screaming): DON'T-(modulating his tone)-Don't say her name.  
Gabriel: Who, Marinette? So you do understand sacrifice!

(Adrien grabs a pot and hurls it at his father, who ducks to the side. It crashes harmlessly against the wall.)

Adrien: I have- I have never known love! Not from you, Gabriel, who controlled me and manipulated me for my entire life, taking away my childhood! Not from you, mother, a woman who I barely knew, and stands by him to this day, while France and the world still reel from what happened. Who, then? The woman I barely knew? My poor excuse of an only true friend?  
Gabriel: You prove my point. I admit, I didn’t work it out as best as I had hoped, but I still gained my result.  
Emma: And what result was that, Mr. Agreste?  
Gabriel: To get back the woman I love, Mademoiselle.  
Adrien: You are one to talk of love in front of me. You, who killed the one person that gave me any hint of joy in my life.  
Gabriel: Assuming we’re talking about Marinette-I didn’t kill her, you did. Remember when she tried to kill me? I said I would never kill a child. You killed her. We were both there.  
Adrien: You needed her dead. You needed a death. Father-there wasn't any other way, like you promised. You needed her sacrifice, so you could bring mom back.  
Gabriel: You know that's not true. You killed her to get her miraculous. Yes, you loved her, but you killed her because you love your FAMILY more. Adrien: No, I killed her so you could take away the thing that gave me freedom and power. You, the person who made me realize how dark and horrifying and loveless the world can truly be. You talk of love, but you only give me and the world hate. And why are you here? Do you want me to sign a contract? Because I can see the paper on the table. No. I’m happy with my new life. It’s hard, but I’m happy. I’m happy with my modeling agency. I got to do a shoot for another company that’s not dominated by you, and I may have met a girl there. I have Alya. I have Nino. I have Lila and her daughter. I even have Chloé, as much as I hate to admit it. So you can take the contract, and you can go. I’m done with you. Go home, Gabriel.  
Isabelle: Adrien-  
Adrien: Go. Home.

(There’s a long beat. Gabriel gets up, and begins to exit right, but he stares at Emma for a second, before shaking his head and leaving. Isabelle remains sitting down.)

Adrien: Mother?  
Isabelle (coldly): I’m not done with my tea.  
Adrien: I’m sorry, he said - you know - and it set me off.  
Isabelle: She must have been quite the remarkable woman, for you to fly off like that. I wish I could have met her.  
Adrien: Y-yes, she was, as a matter of fact.  
Isabelle: I see you’ve brought guests.  
Emma: Mme. Agreste.  
Georges: We were wondering-  
Adrien: No.  
Isabelle: We’re quite testy today, aren’t we, Adrien?  
Adrien: I’m sorry, mother. But given what I went through-  
Isabelle: What did you go through? You had to see your father. I get it. It’s upsetting. But I thought you were stronger than that.  
Adrien: He deliberately got me worked up.  
Isabelle: Yes. I bet he did. Do you know what got me worked up?  
Adrien: Pray tell.  
Isabelle: What got me worked up was seeing those two towers fall and holding you against my chest watching the second plane hit and wondering what world I was raising you in. What got me worked up was having someone empty a pistol into my chest and my last thought being of my five year old son. What got me worked up was coming back and my first sight being my boy in tears. What got me worked up was seeing Paris disappear in a flash of light and having my first thought be of my only child. What got me worked up is losing you and getting you back, over and over and over again, only to lose you again, which I almost did today. So you will never say that I forgave Gabriel because of him, or because of me, but because of you. I wake up screaming, knowing that all that death was my fault. And then I remember the reason why I still have the strength to carry on, and that reason is standing in front of me.

(There’s a long silence.)

Adrien: I have to go. You two lovebirds-  
Georges and Emma: We’re not dating.  
Isabelle (smiling): Could’ve fooled me.  
Emma: I-It’s not what it looks like.  
Adrien: Anyway-you guys just get anything you want out of the cryofield. I’m off.

(Exit Adrien from right.)

Georges: What was that?  
Emma: I felt it too. Like I’m losing feeling all over, and I felt so cold-  
Georges: We have to hurry.  
Isabelle: Take a seat. You never introduced yourselves.  
Georges: Georges Lahiffe.  
Emma: Emma. Emma… Agreste.  
Isabelle: Agreste? We’re family, then. Gabriel never told me he had a brother.  
Emma: Yes… he does?  
Isabelle: You- you’re Felix and Bridget's daughter? Or- maybe a niece-  
Emma: Maybe.  
Isabelle: So, was Orleans for business or pleasure?  
Georges: Information, mostly.  
Emma: We wanted information on where the Miraculouses went after 3/16.  
Isabelle: Gabriel gave them to the new Grand Guardian.  
Emma: Who would that be?  
Isabelle: Why should I tell you? Do you want that power for yourself?  
Emma: Not exactly. I… I already have a Miraculous.

(Emma shows the watch to Isabelle.)

Isabelle: You’re the new Nite Owl?  
Emma: Yes. I’m trying to change the timeline. My predecessor changed the timeline from my timeline to Georges’s timeline, and I… changed it into where it is now.  
Isabelle: So you’re responsible for all of this?  
Emma: Yes. I’m trying to make this right.  
Isabelle: I see… so you’re trying to revert the timeline, preferably to your own.  
Emma: Well, right now I’d settle for one where Paris isn’t a hundred feet underwater.  
Isabelle: And how will you go about doing that?  
Emma: I’m playing that by ear. It involves Marinette Dupain-Cheng living and dating your son.  
Isabelle: And… do I live in your timeline?  
Emma: Well…  
Georges: Probably not.  
Isabelle: So why should I help you? I’m still dead in your timeline. I want to live.  
Georges: It would be for your son.  
Isabelle: My son?  
Georges: Emma can say this better than I can. I’ll look around the house, see if I can find any clues.  
Emma: Thank you, Georges.

(Georges exists upstage left.)

Emma: Madame Agreste, in my timeline, Adrien Agreste and Marinette Dupain-Cheng are happily married. She is the girl of his dreams. And I know this because I’m their daughter.  
Isabelle: Is that so? Well then-tell me about this daughter-in-law of mine.  
Emma: Well, she’s a designer. She co-owns Cheng/Agreste with her husband. She’s no taller than maybe five foot five with black hair dyed dark blue and blue eyes. She is the kindest, cleverest, most trusting, most warm woman you will ever meet. She will know and protect her family, and is so fiercely devoted to the ones she loves. Oh! She’s also a baker. Her croissants are the best in France, and her macarons and eclairs are the best in the world, which is bad if you’re trying to keep a girlish figure. She’s probably the best cook in western Europe, which is good, because dad can probably burn water at this point-  
Isabelle: Yes, Adrien can ruin food in ways I didn’t know food could be ruined.  
Emma: What else? She’s the best person in hair and makeup, if ‘women’s intuition’ has a name, it’s Marinette Dupain-Cheng… Oh, and I miss her so much, and I wonder if I’ll ever see her again…

(Isabelle hugs her granddaughter.)

Isabelle: There, there. You’ll see your mother soon. It’s just a short thing.  
Emma: I… there’s also a boy, a boy I wanna be with, when I get back. I have the biggest crush on him. He’s in my class, and he’s Chat Noir in my timeline. He likes poetry and rap music, and is just the cutest boy you’ll ever meet. He just makes me feel so happy, and I love him and wanna just stay with him when all this is over-

(Isabelle does nothing before reaching to stop Emma. She realizes something, too-this is the only time where she shall see her granddaughter)

Isabelle: So this is really what you want?  
Emma: It’s what I need.  
Isabelle: I understand. I hope you find what you shall seek. I was just like you when I was younger. Hopes. Dreams. A boy in my mind, just like you.

(Blackout, with Isabelle and Emma remaining on stage until the lights are completely out.)


	10. PART 2, ACT 2, SCENE 3-ADRIEN’S ROOM, ORLEANS, HAWKMOTH’S TIMELINE, 2035

PART 2, ACT 2, SCENE 3-ADRIEN’S ROOM, ORLEANS, HAWKMOTH’S TIMELINE, 2035

(Enter Georges, with a laptop in hand, combing over it almost obsessively. His Jacket is off, he is slumped over a chair.)

Georges: Come on, there’s gotta be something. Where are you, dad? Come on...

(Enter Emma with a mug of tea. She hands it to Georges, and he accepts it eagerly.)

Georges: Thanks.  
Emma: Find anything?  
Georges: Nope. Apparently, Facebook conked out sometime around 2020 in this universe, so I’m pretty much lost. Good news-Dad’s living in Orleans. We won’t have to travel.  
Emma: That’s good. We can’t spend more time in this universe unless we absolutely have to. What’s the bad news?  
Georges: Well, I’m not as good a hacker as Joffré, so I can’t-  
Emma: Joffré?  
Georges: Nevermind.

(Emma shakes her head.)

Emma: Go on.  
Georges: But...his Transparenci feeds do show something.  
Emma: What’s that?  
Georges: Well, I’m able to take a few screengrabs of a few of his boards, and I might show something.  
Emma: Great. Do you need me to be here with you?  
Georges: No. I think I’ll be fine. Is your grandma still home?  
Emma: She left about half an hour ago.  
Georges: So it’s just to two of us?  
Emma: UH! Uh-I-haha-yeah, I guess so-uh-Well! Will you look at that! I think my tea finished steeping-I should go get it!

(Emma leans in to peck Georges on the cheek.)

Georges: Did-did you just-

(Emma exits right...and bumps right into Adrien, who enters right. Adrien looks PISSED.)

Adrien: What are you doing in my room?  
Emma: I-  
Adrien: What is your boyfriend doing on my laptop?  
Georges: We’re not dating!  
Adrien: I-that’s irrelevant.  
Emma: We just wanted to find the grand guardian-Nino Lahiffe?  
Adrien: Persistent little thieves, aren’t you?  
Emma: Actually, we-we need your help.  
Adrien: And why should I do that? You break into my house, take advantage of my good hospitality, raid my laptop all in an attempt to steal a weapon of mass destruction-WHY should I help you, again?  
Georges: What if I was to tell you there was another world-where you defeated Hawkmoth, where you and Ladybug won and got married and had kids-how would you feel then?  
Adrien: Then I’d be correct in my earlier assumptions that you two were losing your minds. And you’re a little incorrect in the facts. I didn’t lose the battle at the clock tower.  
Georges: What do you mean?  
Adrien: I fought for Hawkmoth that day. There was some side-switching.

(There’s a faraway look in Adrien’s eyes as he remembers the most painful day in his life.)

Georges: You weren't supposed to-you were supposed to fight with Ladybug and Volpina and the Grand Guardian. Hawkmoth-Hawkmoth tried to alter history by trying to stop you and Marinette from getting together. Emma tried to stop this from happening but-it changed something altogether. We need to know what it was and how to stop it.  
Adrien: I’d say things between me and Ladybug got cold when she tried to attack my own father.  
Emma: That’s it! When I went back in time-Adrien didn’t know the difference between me and mom, because I was transformed! That’s it. That’s the whole thing. We solved it. Now, could you give us Nino’s address so we can go home?  
Adrien: No...no!  
Georges: Why?  
Adrien: You talk of timelines, you talk of a better world. There’s no better world. Things crumbled between me and Ladybug, and maybe I don’t want to face her again!  
Georges: Why not?  
Adrien: Because at the clocktower, I murdered her!  
Georges: You...you did...what?  
Adrien: I-I killed her. Killed La-Marinette.  
Georges: Yeah, I heard from you and Gabriel, but I thought it was indirect-maybe you didn’t take a hit meant for her, or-  
Adrien: No. I-I activated Cataclysm-it all happened so fast-

(Adrien sits down on a chair. He puts his head in his hands. There’s a LONG silence. Georges begins to step between Adrien and Emma, but Emma stops them.)

Emma: You loved her. Didn’t you?  
Adrien: Yes. Yes. And I still do. I haven’t married-I haven’t dated-I haven’t loved anyone since that day.  
Emma: I’m so sorry.  
Adrien: T-tell me about your world. Your timeline. Before the meddling.  
Georges: Well, you-  
Emma: Georges? How about we tell my timeline instead?  
Georges: Oh...OK.  
Adrien: Well?  
Emma: Well-Gabriel got outed as Hawkmoth. He’s out of power and holds no office within Gabriel. Marinette is the head of the daugher company after Gabriel went belly-up. Alya is a reporter at the Guardian.  
Adrien: And Paris?  
Emma: Still standing. Still the city of lights. You live there, by the way.  
Adrien: What about me?  
Emma: Well, you model, but not as much as when you were a kid. You’re mostly a stay-at-home dad, caring for your kids.  
Adrien: But I suck at cooking.  
Emma: Yeah, and you don’t get better.  
Adrien: You said I have kids. Is the mom...not Chloe?

(Georges stiffens. Emma grips Georges’ shoulder)

Emma: Well, it’s better or worse, depending on how you take it. You...you and Marinette have kids together. A girl and two boys. And no betrayal happens, no murder. You marry Marinette. And she’s still CRAZY about you.  
Adrien: She is?  
Emma: But you lose your mother.  
Adrien: I’d lose a hundred mothers it it meant I could have a daughter. And...and two boys. I’d like the sound of that. If you get this right-Marinette is alive, Paris is still around, and the Miracusquad is still together. Is that true?  
Emma: Well-in a sense, yes. You’re a bit off in terms of the Miracusquad. But yes. Everything is more or less fine.  
Adrien: Then...I’m sold. No risk is too great.  
Emma: And it’s not a great risk. Just tell us where Nino Lahiffe lives.  
Adrien: Alright. 44 Rue Belmont. I’ll give you guys directions, if you want. Now...will you kiddos get out of my house already?  
Emma: Right. Thanks, Pere.  
Adrien: Wait-did you just call me your dad?

(Emma freezes. Georges just grins.)

Georges: You have two boys and a girl, Adrien. Louis, Hugo...and Emma.  
Adrien: Did you...are you really my daughter?  
Emma: In another timeline.  
Georges: And in another timeline, she’s the spawn of you and Chloe Bourgeois, but that’s beside the point.  
Emma: Georges! Still...  
Adrien: I’m glad I met you. Emma-do you promise this will make things right?  
Emma: I promise.

(Father and daughter hug. Emma exits. Georges goes to follow her, but Adrien stops him.)

Adrien: Not so fast, son.  
Georges: Yes, sir?  
Adrien: Now, whatever designs on my daughter you might have-  
Georges: Sir, I have no intentions on your daughter-  
Adrien: Now, now. I can’t control who my daughter wants to date. But I can promise you one time-  
Georges: Mr. Agreste, I can promise you, home before twenty-one o’clock-  
Adrien: Good lord, let me finish. She can stay at your house for a long as she wants, but I promise you, son, one hair on her head harmed, son, I can promise you one thing.  
Georges (panicking): And...what’s that?  
Adrien: Armed. Fencing. Champion. Do you read me loud and clear?  
Georges: Oh, yes, sir!  
Adrien: Call me Adrien. And go get her.

(Adrien pushes Georges offstage. The two share a look before Georges walks offstage. Adrien walks offstage before blackout.)


	11. PART 2, ACT 2, SCENE 3-NINO LAHIFFE’S STUDIO, ORLEANS, HAWKMOTH’S TIMELINE, 2035

PART 2, ACT 2, SCENE 3-NINO LAHIFFE’S STUDIO, ORLEANS, HAWKMOTH’S TIMELINE, 2035

(The lights go on to Alya and Nino in bed together. Alya is still asleep, Nino is up, reading a book. Nino checks his watch and moves to wake Alya.)

Nino: Alya. Alya. Wake up.

(Alya wakes up.)

Alya: Mfff… what time is it?  
Nino: Eleven in the morning.  
Alya: Damn, I have to feed Trixx.  
Nino: I already did.  
Alya: Thanks.

(Enter Emma and Georges, who knock on Nino’s door.)

Alya: Were you… expecting anyone?  
Nino: No. Yeah, hang on, give me a second! You should get dressed, too. 

(Nino throws Alya his shirt, hurriedly gets dressed, and opens the door to reveal Emma and Georges.)

Georges: We need the Chat Noir miraculous!

(Nino closes the door. Georges knocks again.)

Alya: Who was it?  
Nino: Door-to-door kwamists. Go back to sleep.  
Alya: You were the one who woke me up.

(Georges knocks again.)

Nino: NO.  
Emma: Mr. Lahiffe, we need your help!  
Nino: How do you know my name?  
Georges: Do I tell him?  
Emma: Whatever works.  
Georges: I’m your son!  
Alya: You have a kid?  
Nino: NO!  
Georges: It’s complicated. Can we come in?  
Alya: Get Wayzz. I’ll keep Vulpp close.

(Nino slips the Miraculous around his arm. Alya drapes her miraculous around her neck, and takes out a gun from the cupboard, holding it behind her back. Nino opens the door.)

Nino: Get inside.

(Georges and Emma walk inside the room.)

Nino: Sit down.

(Emma and Georges sit at a table with four chairs on it.)

Nino: You’re the new Nite Owl.  
Emma: How did you know?  
Nino: Your wrist. When are you from?  
Emma: F-from today?  
Alya: Liar. The last Nite Owl was last seen in 2016. When did you travel last?  
Emma: 1793. And before that, 2016.  
Alya: So you’re trying to fuck up the timeline on a large scale? What’s next, the Nazis are still in power? The Roman Empire never falls?  
Georges: Not true! She’s trying to fix it!  
Nino: From what?  
Georges: We’re from different timelines.  
Nino: You didn’t answer my question.

(Alya sits down at the table, putting her gun on the table.)

Alya: It’s okay, we just wanna talk.  
Georges: Were you about to shoot us?  
Alya: My aim is trash, believe me.  
Georges: Was that supposed to be comforting?  
Nino: Hey! Timelines? What’s going on?  
Emma: The guy that came before me… she meddled with the timeline. She outed Marinette’s crush to Chloé.  
Alya: So it was Nite Owl! Nino, I told you, she was trouble from the beg-  
Emma: Tha-that’s not all. She created Georges’s timeline with her change. I turned it into this timeline with my change.  
Alya: You mean Ladybug attacking Hawkmoth. That was you?  
Emma: Yes. Yes, that was me.  
Nino: But you’re not Ladybug.

(Emma lifts her hair up, showing Nino and Alya the Ladybug Miraculous.)

Alya: The Ladybug Miraculous… It’s supposed to be under fifty feet of water.  
Emma: Alya. My name is Emma Agreste. My mother is Marinette Dupain-Cheng. My father is Adrien Agreste. I am Ladybug.  
Nino: So… you’re from a different timeline?  
Emma: Yes. And you have to help us. Give us the Chat Noir miraculous, and we can-  
Nino: Who’s the Chat Noir miraculous for?  
Georges: Me.  
Nino: You said you were my son.  
Georges: You don’t believe me?  
Nino: No… Who’s the mother?  
Emma: Alya. You… you two are married. In my timeline. And in Georges’s timeline.

(Awkward silence.)

Emma: You’re not married in this timeline? Clearly you’re sleeping with each other.

(Alya and Nino look at each other, then back at Emma and Georges.)

Alya (at the same time as Nino): *Improvised Protesting*  
Nino (at the same time as Alya): *Improvised Protesting*  
Emma (cutting them off): We get it! You’re not married. Could we have the Chat Noir miraculous and go?  
Nino: Right. That thing. I’ll… just go.

(Exit Nino upright.)

Alya: So… we’re married?  
Emma: Yep.  
Alya: That’s… interesting. I mean, I never considered it.  
Georges: Well… I am your kid, so… consider it now.  
Alya: So… what am I like?  
Georges: Well… you’re an editor-in-chief in Paris. You’re pretty important.  
Alya: Nice. And my… my husband?  
Georges: He’s… pretty popular, as well.  
Alya: That must be nice…  
Georges: Yes. Yes, it is.  
Alya: What about you? Do you have any girlfriends?  
Georges: No. Well, there is one girl.  
Alya: Who’s the girl?

(Enter Nino, with the black box with a ring inside, a black mask, a pair of black cat ears, and a black leather jacket.)

Nino: Here it is. Chat Noir.

(Georges puts on the ring.)

Georges: What’s the phrase?  
Nino: ‘Claws out’ is what Adrien used; though ‘Transform me’ is the catch-all. It’s eventually all mental when-  
Georges: Claws out!  
(Georges puts on the paraphernalia. Eventually, he is Chat Noir; the first one in over fifteen years. Emma stands up.)

Emma: Good god, you’re hot.  
Georges: Excuse me?  
Emma: I mean… nothing!  
Georges: Wow…this is so cool! One could say it’s quite the PAWSOME change.

(Everyone else groans.)

Georges: What, why the CLAWFUL response? You’ve CHAT to be KITTEN me!  
Alya: Good lord.  
Nino: He’s just like Adrien.  
Emma: Next, he’s gonna be flirting with me.  
Georges: Oh, I plan to, bugababe, as soon as we’ve got the TIME.  
Emma: No, please.  
Georges: I’m glad you’re giving a HOOT about my puns, but you’d better WATCH yourself.  
Emma: Let’s just get this over with!  
Nino: Yes, let’s.  
Georges: What’s the plan?  
Nino: I’m going to send you back in time.  
Georges: More info, please?  
Nino: Specifically, to the point of departure. We can’t send you back to the EXACT point of departure - because it has Emma involved.  
Emma: So - my mom’s death?  
Nino: Preeecisely.  
Alya: So they’re gonna fight with us?  
Nino: Hopefully.  
Alya: On the off-chance they’re gonna stop Adrien from killing Marinette.  
Nino: That’s what we’re hoping. Then, what you have to do is tell us what you’ve seen here. Give the past version of me some sort of proof.  
Emma: Where’s the proof?  
Nino: Right. I’ll have to make it. Alya, can you give me a USB drive?  
Alya: You get it. I don’t know why you keep vintage stuff.  
Nino: I’ll get it. Get comfy. 

(Nino exits again in the same direction. Georges detransforms)

Georges: Mom - I mean, Alya. Nino mentioned ‘Kwamists’. Who are they?  
Alya: Oh, those? Religious nutjobs that popped up after 3/16. They worship the Miraculouses as a sign of God’s ‘displeasure’ or whatever. They’re mostly harmless, except for that one time they burned down a mosque in Marseilles-  
Emma: SHUT UP!  
Alya: …Excuse me?

(Emma goes to the bed and curls up there.)

Emma: I get it! I fucked up! I messed up the timeline and I killed my mom and I made Paris disappear-  
Alya: You didn’t-  
Emma: I tried to kill my own grandfather! I’m a terrible person.  
Georges: You didn’t kill anyone!  
Emma: TRIED to.

(Georges sits down on the other side of the bed, and puts his arm around Emma.)

Georges: But you didn’t kill anyone. And it isn’t your fault. You made a mistake, sure, but anyone could have made that mistake. I would do the same thing. Okay?  
Emma: I-  
Georges: Nite Owl made the mistake of trusting Hawkmoth. She went back and gave your her Miraculous. She fixed her mistake. And it’s time to fix yours, and I’m going to help you.  
Emma: Thank you. I don’t deserve you - I mean, this.  
Georges: Yes, you do.

(Emma and Georges lie down on the bed together. Emma sets the Miraculous.)

Emma: Are you ready?  
Georges: As I’ll ever be. Go ahead.  
Emma: Allons-y!

(Blackout.)


	12. PART 3, ACT 1, SCENE 1-HAWKMOTH’S LAIR, HAWKMOTH’S TIMELINE, 2016

PART 3, ACT 1, SCENE 1-HAWKMOTH’S LAIR, HAWKMOTH’S TIMELINE, 2016 

(The two enter Hawkmoth’s Lair, downstage right. They hide behind a barricade.)

Georges: Emma?  
Emma: Stay focused, remember? This mission is of critical importance.  
Georges: I don't see why we're so worried about this. We may not have your Madame Peacock and Yellowjacket with us, but we’re pretty formidable on our own.

(Georges moves his hand around Emma’s shoulder.)

Georges: So - while the birds and bees are away - the Cat and Ladybug can play. I- I mean - play with our friend the moth, here. How about we go ahead, help your Mom out, and try to repair the relationship directly?

(Emma removes Georges’s hand from her shoulder.)

Emma: Not that, you dork...as in, if we don't do this, we might fade out of existence. And more to your point - if we do specifically that, we might fade out of existence. That would be rather catastrophic, don't you think?  
Georges: ...yes. CATastrophic.  
Emma: CHAT-

(Georges gives a shrug.)

Georges: I’m sorry, but you walked into that one.

(There is an awkward silence.) 

Georges: So… time shenanigans, huh? 2016! This is awesome!

(Emma tries to shush Georges, to no avail. Hawkmoth turns around and narrows his eyes at the barricade, then turns back the way he came.)

Georges: Gotta love the retro! The Apple Watch, the Hoverboard, the 'Pokemon Go' Craze...it's kinda cute. I often find myself listening to those old 'Panic! at The Disco' songs…

(Emma glares at Georges, and Georges looks at her apologetically.) 

Emma: If you aren’t going to pay attention-  
Georges: Right. The mission. What's the plan? You 'lucky charm' a sniper rifle and take out your Grandpa Gabriel?

(Emma continues to glare at him.)

Emma: Dad always said I inherited his sense of humor and Mom's sass… Anyway, we need to make sure our parents get together. And stay that way.  
Georges: 'Our' parents? My parents are fine. I mean, they broke up in college, but they got back together, right?  
Emma: Not so. Remember what happened? Marinette will drive Alya and Nino apart. Your existence is at stake too.

(Georges freezes, remembering what’s at stake, then he lightens up.)

Georges: In any event, I wanna make sure my future girlfriend exists back in 2035.

(Everyone can hear sounds coming from stage right. Emma and Georges freeze. Gabriel turns stage right. Alya Cesare as Volpina and Nino Lahiffe as Jade Turtle run onstage from right. Gabriel raises his cane and levels it at En Garde Position.) 

Georges: Shit, there are my folks! Get down!  
Alya: Hawkmoth. Stand down. Where’s Nite Owl?  
Gabriel: And all this time, I thought that the Fox Miraculous would be on my side. Nevermind; Nite Owl has served their purpose. My intentions for securing the Ladybug and Chat Noir Miraculous have always been good, Volpina. Join me, and I swear I will return their Miraculouses to-

(Alya raises her hand, and Hawkmoth shuts up.)

Alya: Could you perhaps… not lie to a master of deception?  
Gabriel: Don’t say I never tried to be reasonable. CHAT NOIR!  
Nino: LADYBUG! NOW!  
Georges: Once again, PLAN? There are going to be no less than five Miraculous holders, seven including us, in the room. You've got the golden quartet, Hawkmoth, and us. Even if we join in the fight, there’s still your dad to take care of, and you can bet he got an akuma that gave him…infinite cataclysms or something. I hope you have a plan.  
Emma: I guess you got lucky… a panther cage did all the work for you.  
Georges: And Hawkmoth could undo it all.

(From left comes Adrien as Chat Noir, from right, Marinette as Ladybug. Adrien looks different; instead of black, his suit is all white. He's now Chat Blanc)

Adrien: Ladybug.

(Marinette freezes.)

Marinette: Kitty. Join us. We can fight Hawkmoth together. It’s not too late!  
Adrien: My lady, I-I can’t. Hawkmoth will… Hawkmoth will help me do something I've been meaning to do for a long time. I can feel it. This is all for the best. He’s given me his word that the Guardian will get the major Miraculouses back.  
Marinette: Hawkmoth lies, Chaton. What could he need that would possibly require the Miraculouses? World domination? World destruction? What is your endgame, anyway?  
Gabriel: I have all the power I want, silly girl, and destruction is more of Chat Noir’s forte. No, I’m going to protect someone I love from the grave. Will you not do the same for your precious Adrien Agreste?  
Marinette: That man would get no protection from me. Wait. How did you know-  
Alya: Shit. He knows! We have to go.  
Adrien: Knows what?  
Gabriel: A simple alliance with Nite Owl did the trick. Don’t you remember our little talk from a few months ago?  
Marinette: You mean you-  
Nino: He’s fucking with your head. Don’t listen to him!  
Adrien: You can help me, Ladybug. It doesn’t have to end this way. It doesn’t have to end with you trying to kill my father.  
Marinette: Kitty? Speak some sense! You’re Hawkmoth’s son?  
Adrien: You really don’t remember?  
Gabriel: She might not even, my boy…  
Nino: You better spill what’s going o-

(Adrien detransforms.)

Nino: No!  
Alya: So your dad… Gabriel Agreste? It makes no sense. Why would a guy with everything in the world-  
Gabriel: Because I don’t have everything in the world, Volpina. I don’t have my wife, for instance-  
Marinette: So that’s what this is about. Your wife. You did this all out of love?  
Gabriel: Don’t you understand?  
Marinette: Looking back on it… making child soldiers, manipulating emotions, letting people die… no. I don’t..

(Adrien retransforms. All five Miraculous holders upstage fight.)

Emma: We need to change our tune. Nino was wrong. I think we're a little too far in the future. My event has already happened, so there’s no chance that they’ll get together. Besides, my mom is set to die in this timeline in-

(Emma looks at the watch on her wrist.)

Emma: Two hours. Hold onto your jacket, Chaton. We're going back… but not to the future, Marty.  
Georges: What do you mean-  
Emma: Allons-y!

(Blackout.)

Adrien: Marinette? It was you all this time? Oh, god. Oh, god!  
Gabriel: Adrien! Get out of there! We have what we need!


	13. PART 3, ACT 1, SCENE 2-A STREET IN PARIS OUTSIDE THE DUPAIN-CHENG PATISSERIE, GEORGES’S TIMELINE, 2015

PART 3, ACT 1, SCENE 2-A STREET IN PARIS OUTSIDE THE DUPAIN-CHENG PATISSERIE, GEORGES’S TIMELINE, 2015

(Georges and Emma wake up on a street bench. It is a busy Paris street, with people going about their business, paying Emma and Georges little mind. Georges wakes up, and then moves to wake Emma up.)

Georges: Hey, where are- I mean,when are we?

(Emma checks her watch.)

Emma: 2015. A few weeks after the first Volpina incident, and about six months before I altered your timeline. The day Chat Noir pushed his luck a bit too far and Mom didn't quite push far enough.

(Georges scratches the back of his head.)

Georges: So about a year, huh? Was it just the two of them, or did MY mom and dad join in yet?  
Emma: No, your mom was still in her "blog whenever Ladybug so much as coughs" phase. They didn't join in until after Master Fu retired, remember? By then Mom and Dad were a solid few months into their relationship.  
Georges: Ooooohhh… So what do we do? 

(Georges’s eyes widen in fright, as if he’s seen a ghost.)

Georges: What- what just happened?  
Emma: Like I said. Something in this timeline might change. Maybe Alya and Nino break up after Marinette dies, or maybe Alya or Nino will die because of Hawkmoth. All the more reason we stick to the plan.  
Georges: Plan?

(Emma freezes.)

Emma: You don't remember? You were in the meeting when your dad and I were discussing this!  
Georges: The meeting. Right. Yeah. I remember! I swear!  
Emma: Want me to go over it again for you?

(Beat.)

Georges: …fine. Hey, to be fair, you changed the plan a lot. So is this a new plan?  
Emma: Y-yes. I guess. That’s not the point, all right?  
Georges: Okay. What’s your plan?  
Emma: I'm only going to say this once. You remember the point of departure. Nite Owl outed Marinette’s crush to Chloé, so of course Chloé humiliates my mom in public again, diverging from my timeline and creating-.  
Georges: My timeline?  
Emma: Yes. Anyway, my dad is going to go comfort her, and things are going to end awkwardly. Your mom is going to enact some crazy scheme to set my parents up together, but it's going to backfire and end up with Dad admitting that he likes a nonspecific "somebody else" in front of Mom. Later tonight, on patrol, Chat is going to say just the wrong thing to set Ladybug off and ruin their relationship forever, setting your timeline in stone. Unless we interfere, of course.  
Georges: ...Okay. And how do we go about doing that? "Hi, Mr. Agreste, Mme. Cheng, I'm Georges Lahiffe, I'm the son of your mutual friends Alya Cesare and Nino Lahiffe, and you guys need to get together, otherwise my crush will disappear from the fabric of space-time, and that would be sad. Also, do I have your blessing to date your daughter?”

(Emma spontaneously bursts out laughing.)

Georges: ...Did I miss anything?

(Emma does not stop laughing.)

Emma: No, that would be an absolute trainwreck.  
Georges: Careful now, we wouldn't want to interrupt our TRAIN of thought.

(Emma continues to laugh.)

Georges: Emma, let’s try not to DERAIL the conversation, try to at least stay STATIONary.

(Emma keeps laughing, and Georges’s eyes are shining; it’s the first time she’s ever laughed at one of his puns.)

Georges: Okay, let’s SWITCH the conversation back to your idiot parents.

(Emma slowly stops laughing.)

Emma: No, we go undercover and subtly influence events so they end up telling each other who they are and realize how much they love each other - all of each other. Unless you have any better ideas?

(Georges thinks.)

Georges: Nope. OH! I've got an idea! It… involves fake dating and civilian selves.  
Georges: Okay, bear with me.  
Emma: I'm all ears, kitten. Lay it on me.  
Georges: Okay, so you see a cute couple, right? And don't you always think: Why, oh, why, can't that cute couple be me?

(Emma seems confused.)

Georges: I mean: double dates. Why do double dates exist? It's to inspire the other couple to get together! It's worth a shot, no?  
Emma: That's… almost better than anything I could come up with. You definitely have your mom's brain in that thick skull of yours.

(Georges points to stage left; Adrien and Marinette enter the shop. Alya is loitering outside.)

Georges: Okay. There's your mom and dad at the bakery, trying to hash things out, no thanks to my mom. We go in, sit down AT THE TABLE NEXT TO THEM, that's important. And...we can try to subtly interfere. Sound like a plan?  
Emma: Sounds good. And… I just thought of something. Something that Tikki and Nooroo told me can help!  
Georges: ...How so?  
Emma: From what Tikki tells me, her and Plagg were trying to set them up together from the very start. Something about "Ladybug and Chat Noir being destined to be together..." Either way...I think the odds are in our favor.  
Georges: Well, time cannot change all things, my lady.

(There’s a beat where they look at each other in a way neither could have imagined.)

Georges: Plagg, claws in! 

(Georges detransforms; Emma shakes her head, knocking it off.)

Emma: Right. Tikki, spots off!

(Emma detransforms. Georges holds Emma’s hand.)

Georges: Are you okay with this? We have to look convincing.  
Emma: No sweat, kitten. I'm into theatre back home. I could do this all day.

(Emma kisses Georges’s cheek.)

Emma: Is that convincing enough for you?  
Georges: It even convinces me.

(The new couple walk into Emma’s grandparent's bakery. Adrien and Marinette are sitting at a table, Adrien talking to Marinette in hushed tones. Emma and Georges sit down at an empty table next to Adrien and Marinette.)

Georges: So, babe, how was school?

(Emma shrugs.)

Emma: It was fine, honey. Lila gave me a dirty look in the hall again for going out with you.  
Georges: Ugh, let her leer. I can't believe I dated her.  
Georges: You're like a breath of fresh air.  
Emma: So are you. Want something from here? I've heard their macarons are incredible.  
Georges: Yeah, so I've heard.

(Adrien, distracted by the conversation next to him, turns to Georges.)

Adrien: You know Lila?  
Georges: Oh. Yeah. Lila Rossi. She's… Hella cray.  
Adrien: Yeah… What’s your name, anyway?  
Georges: My name's… Gilbert. Gilbert Lafayette.  
Marinette: Ugh, Lila… I can't stand her.  
Georges: I know, right? I made the mistake of taking her out on a date once.

(Georges extends his hand to Marinette.)

Georges: Gilbert Lafayette. I've already met your boyfriend. And you are?

(Marinette shakes Georges’s hand. Emma grabs two iced coffees and a flight of macarons, setting it down on the table.)

Georges: Oh, thanks! Want me to pay you back?  
Emma: If you want to, minou. Otherwise, I'll just work it off in the future.

(Marinette turns to Georges.)

Marinette: M-Marinette Dupain-Cheng. My parents own this place, so… w-wait, b-boyfriend?  
Emma: And I'm Emilie. Emilie Arnaud, the smart one of this duo.  
Georges: I'm the dumb one? You wound me, I'm considering the Sorbonne for college.

(Georges kisses Emma.)

Georges: But truth be told, Emilie is… my better half.  
Emma: Oh, you flatter me too much, Gilbert. What about you guys? You're dating, right?  
Georges: Apparently they aren't. It's a shame, you'd make a good couple.  
Marinette: Um... well… I guess. I've told Adrien how I like him… but he says he's got a crush on somebody else.  
Emma: That’s disappointing. Gilbert's right. You two would make a purr-fect couple.

(Adrien raises an eyebrow, Marinette nearly spits out her coffee. Georges makes a dragging motion across his neck. There’s a beat of awkward silence, broken by Georges.)

Georges: Oh, that IS a shame. Well, out with it, Adrien. Who's the lucky gal?  
Adrien: Well… I - and I know this sounds silly - but I have a crush on Ladybug. The superhero. And… I know I sound like every other fourteen year old boy, but…I'm thinking I might have a ghost of a chance.  
Emma: If only you knew… Anyway, she might like you more than you think she does. If you think you have a chance, why don't you ask her out?  
Adrien: Alright, I'll try.  
Emma: That's all I'm asking for. And if it doesn't work out, you should consider giving Marinette here another chance. I've seen her around at school, and she's a pretty cool girl, don't you think, Gilbert?  
Georges: Oh, yeah! I think so! I've actually seen your designs, and I… I love them. Gabriel Agreste has nothing on you! No offense meant, Adrien. Your dad is still a great artist.  
Adrien: None taken. I'd agree, Marinette. Your designs are pretty great!  
Marinette: Y-you think so?

(Emma checks the Owl Miraculous.)

Georges: Okay… Emmmmilie… We need to get to our vocal lesson, it's in like fifteen minutes. Great Meeting you guys. We’ll… uh… see you at school.  
Emma: Right, honey. Let's go. See you lovebirds later!  
(Georges grabs Emma’s arm)  
Georges: Okay… now for phase two. We've mended Adrien and Marinette. Now, we need to reveal the truth to one of them, so it's not a double blind. I say we tell your mom first, so she doesn't reject Adrien when she confesses. Now, we just need to WAAAAAIII-

(Alya grabs her own son and flings him against the wall, police style.)

Alya: You ruined it! You idiots must have fucking ruined everything! How much did Chloé pay you guys?  
Georges: Emma, help!  
Emma: Ruined… Miss Cesaire, what do you think you're doing with my boyfriend? We're no friends of Chloé, we assure you.  
Georges: Yeah! Even though she does get nicer and marries Nathanael… No, Chloé? Nah, mo- Alya, no connection! In fact, we… we were trying to help your plan along!

(Georges turns his head to Emma and quickly nods.)

Alya: What proof do I have that I can trust you?

(Georges and Emma look at each other awkwardly. After a moment of awkward silence, Emma holds up her watch.)

Emma: Here. My Miraculous. I’m Nite Owl.  
Alya: YOU’RE Nite Owl?  
Emma: Yes. Trust me, I’m on your side.  
Alya: C-can I have an interview?  
Georges: I’m… not sure if Nite Owl is open to interviews; she’s not the public face of the Miracusquad.  
Alya: A-ba-ba. Nite Owl uses they/them pronouns. How their boyfriend didn’t know that is beyond me.  
Emma: Er… yes. That’s right.  
Georges: Right. I’m sorry.  
Emma: It’s all right, I’m fine.

(Georges turns Emma around.)

Georges: How was I supposed to know Nite Owl used they/them pronouns?  
Emma: I didn’t either; I thought they looked female. Maybe they were.  
Georges: But now they died with your timeline.  
Emma: No need to worry about that now. I’m supposed to be Nite Owl, remember?  
Alya: AHEM. Don’t mind me.

(They both turn around)

Emma: Actually, I would be happy to do an interview. But I want one thing in return.  
Alya: Sure, what?  
Emma: I want some time with the lovebirds.  
Georges: Ha, ‘lovebirds’. You’re almost as bad as your da- as Chat Noir.

(Emma glares at Georges.)

Emma: I don’t even see a pun there… does twelve hours from now, on the Pont Alexandre III sound good?  
Alya: Works for me.

(They shake hands on it; Alya runs off stage left.)

Emma: Okay. We out dad to mom.  
Georges: The entire plan hinges on her.

(They both walk back inside. Marinette is entering from upstage left with a baking sheet of freshly baked goods.)

Marinette: Gilbert! Emilie! Back so soon?  
Emma: It got canceled. Mme. Piaf came down with a fever.  
Marinette: That’s a shame. So you decided to come back here?  
Emma: Yes. Where’s Adrien?  
Marinette: Adrien… showed himself out.  
Georges: Yes, well, there is something about Adrien we’d like you to know about.  
Marinette: There is, isn’t there? Well, I don’t need to hear anything about Adrien fucking Agreste.  
Emma: Don’t be so harsh.  
Marinette: No. Listen, if he wants to be with someone else, that’s his choice. It’s my fault, really; I couldn't form a sentence around him…  
Georges: It’s about Adrien. It concerns him and you, and if we don’t tell you, Hawkmoth wins. 

(Emma raises her watch for Marinette to see.)

Marinette: Nite Owl?  
Georges: Marinette, we need to talk. In your room.  
Marinette: I’m listening.

(Marinette goes back upstage right; Georges and Emma follow her. Blackout.)


	14. PART 3, ACT 2, SCENE 1-MARINETTE’S ROOM, GEORGES’S TIMELINE, 2015

PART 3, ACT 2, SCENE 1-MARINETTE’S ROOM, GEORGES’S TIMELINE, 2015

(The chairs, tables, and counters are removed and replaced with a bed and a desk; we are suddenly in Marinette’s room. Marinette, Georges and Emma enter from down right.)

Marinette: What is this about Adrien?

(Marinette sits on a chair, Emma and Georges sit down on her bed.)

Emma: It’s… two truths, really. The first is… he does have a crush on you, but not in the way you think.  
Marinette: What do you mean?  
Emma: Listen, I also have another thing I’d like to get off my chest. We…may or may not know that you’re Ladybug.  
Marinette: I knew it would come soon. Does Chat Noir know?  
Georges: No, he doesn’t. Everybody who knows you to be Ladybug is in this room.  
Marinette: Good.  
Emma: Now we can talk freely. He likes you, Marinette! He does!  
Marinette: He doesn’t. He likes Ladybug.  
Georges: I… he likes Ladybug. Ergo, he likes you.  
Marinette: He likes Ladybug.  
Georges: You make it sound like you’re different people.  
Marinette: We’re like two people in the same body. Ladybug is confident, headstrong, clever, sexy, quick-witted…no wonder he likes her.  
Georges: And you?  
Marinette: I’m a clumsy, normal girl who can do some things with a needle and thread.

(There’s a moment of sad silence.)

Emma: How’s Chat Noir?  
Marinette: Chat Noir? He’s there. We hang out sometimes. Why? He’s a bit of a flirt, really. It’s…kinda cute.  
Emma: Draw me a sketch of him.  
Marinette: Why?  
Emma: Do you want me to pay you?  
Marinette: No need, but- why do you need me to draw Chat?  
Emma: Hear me out.

(Marinette takes out a pencil and notepad, beginning to sketch out Chat Noir.)

Georges: That’s your plan?  
Emma: Do you have a better one?  
Georges: No. I guess not. So… is there anything else you wanna tell her?  
Emma: No.  
Georges: Oh.

(Emma pulls Georges off to the side.)

Emma: So… about that talk we had in 1793…  
Georges: Y-yes? I mean, I’m not the best at time stuff, you’re really teaching this to me as we go along-  
Emma: Not about that. The crush. I’ve been meaning to ask you about that.  
Georges: Oh! Yeah. That. Ha…  
Emma: Did you really have feelings for me?  
Georges: Just… just forget it.  
Emma: No! I’m… I’m really asking.  
Georges: Yes. I had a crush, alright? In my timeline. And I’m sorry for calling you a cruel bitch-  
Emma: It’s fine. How come you had a crush on me?  
Georges: It was kind of sudden. We hadn’t really hung out, because my mom hated your mom. So, when you came home from a boarding school in Switzerland, I… I had a crush on you - well, the other you. It was kind of pathetic, really. It was really a quick thing, and I was really only attracted to her looks. And… I wish she was nicer. That’s the worst part. I thought - well, I thought I could change her, make her nicer, and looking back on it-it was kind of selfish of me. I guess I should have gotten the message when you slapped me across the face.  
Emma: Maybe it was.  
Georges: I guess. Why- why did you ask?  
Emma: Because I wanted to know if it was real.  
Georges: If what was real?  
Emma: Your crush.  
Georges: Why do you care about my crush?  
Emma: In my timeline, I have a crush.  
Georges: I may have heard. Don’t worry; I’m sure there are a lot of boys who like rapping and poetry in Paris in 2035.  
Emma: But boys who are Chat Noir?  
Georges: I still don’t know who that guy is-  
Emma: It’s you, you idiot. It’s you. It’s always been you.  
Georges: You have a crush on me?  
Emma: Yes! Yes, I do! I love you. Our parents hung out a lot, so we were friends, and we had a little squad. And then… you got so heated about something. I don’t remember now… something about your cousin’s hijab almost being torn off by some racist guy… and I thought: damn. And I’ve been in love ever since.  
Georges: It’s always been you.  
Emma: Yes. And it’s always been you, too.

(Georges and Emma’s heads come together, almost by gravity, and they close their eyes, ready to kiss…)

Marinette: Gilbert? Emilie? I have your sketch!

(Emma and Georges separate.)

Emma (aside): Cockblocked by my own mother…  
Georges (aside): She likes me!

Emma walks up to the sketch and grabs the pencil from out of Marinette’s hand.)

Marinette: Okay…

(Emma starts to vigorously erase the Chat Noir drawings’ ears)

Marinette: What are you doing?  
Georges: Just trust my girlfriend.

(Emma looks up at Georges and smiles, before continuing to erase. She then shows Marinette the picture. Chat Noir’s ears and mask have been erased. Marinette looks aghast.)

Emma: Does it look like anyone now?  
Marinette: I… I have to go.  
Georges: Where?  
Marinette: My balcony. I have to scream for a second.

(Exeunt. We can hear Marinette scream in exasperation, from offstage. The lights dim, and suddenly, we are on a bridge in Paris.)


	15. PART 3, ACT 2, SCENE 2-PONT ALEXANDRE III, GEORGES’S TIMELINE, 2015

PART 3, ACT 2, SCENE 2-PONT ALEXANDRE III, GEORGES’S TIMELINE, 2015

(Enter Adrien and Marinette, as Ladybug and Chat Noir.)

Adrien: Bugaboo! How fine are you this-  
Marinette: N-not tonight, Chat.  
Adrien: What’s wrong?  
Marinette: Just… I’m… kind of down.  
Adrien: What do you mean?  
Marinette: Just… today. Today got me down. And I guess I’m still scared.  
Adrien: Oh. So it was Adrien Agreste? How did it go?  
Marinette: It… went well, I guess? We met two kids at the bakery, and they… they showed me things.  
Adrien: What did they show you?  
Marinette: Stuff that should have excited me, but really scared me.

(Enter Emma, transformed only as Nite Owl, and Georges, untransformed.)

Adrien: Nite Owl! Hey.  
Emma: Hey! What’s up, minou?  
Adrien: Oh, nothing. Me and Ladybug were just chilling.  
Marinette: W-who’s the guy with you?  
Emma: Oh! This is… is my boyfriend.  
Adrien: So you revealed yourself.  
Emma: Yes. I figured it was better for a relationship to grow with as few secrets as possible.  
Georges: Thank you for sharing this. I would have gotten jealous.  
Emma: Yes, slipping out every night does seem kind of dubious.  
Adrien: So, what’s your name?  
Georges: Uh…

(Emma nudges him.)

Georges: Gilbert Lafayette.  
Adrien: I think we’ve met. We met today, in fact.  
Georges: Did we, now?  
Adrien: Ah, whatever. So… do we just do a street patrol?  
Marinette: I guess. I just wanna chill, and I don’t wanna climb.  
Emma: Chilling instead of patrolling?  
Adrien: Well, something was bothering her.  
Emma: Aww, what?  
Marinette: Just a… just a boy!  
Emma: Would this be the boy you’ve been harping about for the last year at school?  
Adrien: Yes, do tell!  
Marinette: Y… yes. It’s that boy. Adrien Agreste.  
Adrien: What did you find out?  
Marinette: He… likes me. As in, he likes Ladybug, but not… you know. The girl behind the mask.  
Adrien: And how do you know that?  
Emma: She thinks Adrien doesn’t even know her name.  
Adrien: Hah! Adrien is an idiot. He doesn’t know what he’s missing. If I were him, I would ask you out in a heartbeat, my lady.  
Marinette: And if this girl is the most clumsiest, most pathetic girl you ever met?  
Adrien: I happen to find clumsy very cute, bugababy.  
Marinette: And if you wanna-  
Emma: Jesus Christ, Lady. Let the boy ask you out.  
Georges: Yeah, he’s basically declared his undying love for you. Get him to ask you out so we can go home.

(Adrien glares at his daughter.)

Marinette: Undying love, huh?  
Adrien: I have before, and I will again. I swear I’ll love you, no matter who’s under the mask.  
Marinette: …Fine. You wanna ask her out, Adrien? Do it right here, right now.

(Marinette detransforms partially, only removing her mask. Adrien has a look of joy plastered on his face.)

Marinette: You- you're not disappointed, are you? That it was me?  
Adrien: Are you kidding? I'm ecstatic! There's nobody else I'd rather it have been than you.  
Marinette: You- you don’t mean that. You said you’d love anyone, no matter who-  
Adrien: Well… today someone told me that if Ladybug rejected me, then I should give Marinette a try. And maybe… maybe that person was right. You still are a very incredible woman.  
Marinette: Adrien, I-  
Adrien: You’re beautiful, Marinette. With or without the mask.  
Georges: Emma, we did it!

(Georges kisses Emma, Emma holding the kiss for a few seconds, much to Georges’s surprise. Not a few feet away, Adrien and Marinette kiss, for as long as Georges and Emma)

Emma: This is fantastic. 

(Emma takes the initiative this time, kissing Georges for longer than he kissed her before drawing back.) 

Emma: Pound it?

(They slowly fistbump. Enter Alya)

Alya: Gilbert! Nite Owl! There you are! Where’s my story? And… why’s Marinette here? And why’s she wearing a Ladybug cosplay? And why’s Chat Noir here too? Wait a minute-  
Emma: It’s not what you think it is-  
Alya: It’s exactly what I think it is! Marinette, you and Chat are dating, and this is some weird costume thingy!  
Georges: She’s not exactly wrong…We’d best get going.  
Adrien: Wait! How can we ever thank you?  
Georges: No need to thank us… but perhaps we could stay and wait until they… seal the deal? We could enjoy 2016…  
Emma: You're such an idiot, Georges… I promised Mom we'd be back for dinner. Besides, there's enough butterfly effects happening here with Hawkmoth still afoot.  
Georges: But we have all the time in the world, don’t we?  
Emma: Don’t push it, chaton. Our work here is done.  
Georges: Okay… set it to 1 September, 2035…  
Emma and Georges: Allons-y! 

(Emma punches the Owl Miraculous. There’s a tremendous flash of light, before Blackout.)


	16. PART 0, ACT 0, SCENE 0-OUTSIDE OF TIME AND SPACE, PRE-POD

(Exeunt everyone on the bridge except for Emma and Georges. Stage crew rushes in and takes away the set pieces, leaving only the Ghost Light onstage. All the lights go off except for the ghost light. Emma and Georges both feel a nervous sense of foreboding-it was supposed to all go back to normal, right?)

Emma: Georges? Georges, we did it! Georges?  
Georges: Em, something doesn’t feel right. We should be back home, but-  
Emma: But what? We did it, and that’s what matters, right?  
Georges: N-no. No, Emma-I don’t, I can’t-  
Emma: Georges, talk to me. I don’t understand what’s wrong.  
Georges: Why aren’t we waking up in bed? In your timeline, or whatever timeline we’re in? Why is it just us and-and this light? Something isn’t right.  
Emma: I’m sure everything will be fine.  
Nite Owl (from offstage): You're both right, you know. Everything is fine, but the future doesn’t have a place for you. At least, that version of you.  
Georges: Who are you?

(Nite Owl, out of uniform enters from Upstage Center.)

Nite Owl: Georges Lahiffe? Name’s Nite Owl.  
Georges: Oh, I know who you are.  
Nite Owl: I see.  
Emma: What are you doing here? Aren’t you dead?  
Nite Owl: Yep! Totally, sister! Being caught in the wreckage of a dead timeline is NOT good for your health.  
Emma: So how are-  
Nite Owl: A Nite Owl chosen can talk to their immediate predecessor. It takes practice. I’m impressed you managed to pull it off. Any more questions?

(Georges takes Emma’s hand.)

Georges: I have a question. What happens to us? Do we still live?  
Emma: And what happens to the Owl miraculous? And…and what does the light do?  
(Nite Owl giggles. They walk up to the ghost light, and cradle it with their hands.)

Nite Owl: Look at you. So precious…  
Georges: We asked you a question.  
Nite Owl: Oh yeah, thoooose. Well, those questions are all interconnected! I’m going to answer those with a question of my own. Can anyone tell me-how do you start a universe?  
Georges: The big bang, right?  
Nite Owl: Exactly! Ten points to Hufflepuff!  
Georges (to Emma): Emma, I’m not-I’m not in Hufflepuff!  
Emma: I’m not going to take a side in that debate.  
Nite Owl: AAAAANYWAY! What do you have before the Big Bang? All that energy has to come from somewhere!  
Emma (with a note of dread): We-we don’t know. A ball of dust and gas, right? an infinitesimally small point of matter.  
Nite Owl: Ten points to Slytherin, baby!  
Emma: I’m not in Slytherin! And those books are so old, anyway! (beat) Wait, but-but that means-  
Nite Owl: You’re right on the money! That light there-that’s a BOMB, ready to go off any second now!  
Georges: So that universe that’ll be created…  
Nite Owl: Got created by you! Your temporal meddling created a new universe, and you’re about to watch it get born.  
Emma: But-but how do we get out? And what happens to Nite Owl?  
Nite Owl: Nite Owl…well. The Nite Owl miraculous…the big bang will take care of that.  
Emma: It’ll just get created in the new universe.  
Nite Owl: Nope. Miraculouses differ from version to version. There might be a Nite Owl...there might not be a Nite Owl. There's no way of knowing.  
Emma: So how is this universe any different?  
Nite Owl: From yours, or from Georges’s or-  
Emma: From all of it! What did we just do?  
Nite Owl:…Well. You’ve negated all the damage I’ve done, for one. And…you get some benefits. It’s not a straight reversion to your universe, Emma.  
Georges: What do you mean?  
Nite Owl: It will be better that whatever you’ve faced, trust me on this. Your love life will get some improvement, for one. But you won’t get to see this. At least, your current versions.  
Georges: What does that mean?  
Nite Owl: Your physical forms will be burned to a crisp by the big bang, but you will appear again, in the universe you've built. We can’t have you in the same timeline as someone with the exact same genetic code, with the exact same temporal imprint. That would cause all sorts of problems. Sooo-the Nite Owl miraculous deposited you right at the last few minutes before the big bang. It’s necessary; the alternative is killing the Georges and Emma of this universe and passing you off as them-and I’m sure you wouldn't want to do that.  
Emma: Wait-there has to be another way!  
Nite Owl: I’m sorry. I’m-this is the best way.

(Nite Owl slowly exits from whence she came. Emma lunges at Nite Owl, but Georges holds her back. Georges switches his physical contact from a restraint into a loving embrace)

Emma: You-you monster! You murderer! You can’t just-you can’t-Georges, let go! I have to do something, WE have to do something for both of us!  
Georges: Shhhhh….shhhh…  
Emma: Georges, how can you be so calm? We’re gonna die, we’re both going to die…Georges: Because there’s no other way. Emma. Emma, calm down.

(Emma releases herself from Georges’s grip.)

Emma: Georges, are we-are we really going to die here?  
Georges: You mean, as we are?  
Emma: Yeah. Yeah, like this. Our physical forms.  
Georges: Don’t think of it as death. Think of it as rebirth. A phoenix. We’ll come back, I promise. This is all for the best. Trust Nite Owl. 

(Emma turns around to face Georges. Georges extends his hand, and Emma takes it.)

Emma: Georges, hold me. I’m scared.

(Georges holds Emma. They look downstage, at the ghost light)

Emma: It’s beautiful, isn’t it?  
Georges: Yeah. Yeah, I guess it is.  
Emma: Do you know what will happen?  
Georges: Not exactly. You’re the nerd, out of the two of us.

(Emma chuckles.)

Emma: I guess. Well-in a few trillionths of a second, the universe will begin to expand. Stars will take shape, making elements and atoms, and then they’ll supernova, making a few more. Of those stars, a star called the sun will take shape. Around that star, there’s going to be a clump of gas and dust-  
Georges: Let’s call it the earth-  
Emma: And on that ball of dust and gas a chemical compound called water fills seventy percent of the ball. And then-something big happens.  
Georges: Life.  
Emma: And then new strains of life develop. And two members one species of life-lets call them people-  
Georges: People sound nice.  
Emma: And then a pair of people, Alya Cesare and Nino Lahiffe fall in love and have a little boy called Georges Lahiffe. Alya and Nino’s best friends, Adrien Agreste and Marinette Dupain-Cheng, have three little children, named Louis, Emma, and Hugo. And this is their story.  
Georges: I can’t wait to see how it ends.

(The two kiss; blackout.)


	17. PART 1, ACT 1, SCENE 1-EMMA'S ROOM, CANON TIMELINE, 2034

(Keep the lights off. The stage, in a blinding whirl, turns back to Emma’s room. However, it’s irrevocably and strangely changed in a few ways-to the point where you can’t point out a difference, but the entire look and energy of the room has changed from the last time we were here. Over the rush of the stage coming together, various audio clips of people talking start playing-clips from historical events, clips of various cast and crew members talking about their experiences in life or even reading from books, and even clips from the show. After Emma’s bed (with Emma and Georges on it, covered by the sheets) is rolled on, the lights come up. Enter Louis.)

Louis: Em! Em, come on, up and at em.

(No response from either Emma or Georges.)

Louis: Emma?

(No response. Louis walks over and shakes Georges awake, thinking that Georges is Emma. In response, Georges shakes Louis off and wakes up, revealing himself to Louis and the audience.)

Georges: OK, I’m up! I’m up. Are you happy now, Louis?  
Louis: Oh…oh my god.  
Emma: Louis, go back to bed, it’s late.  
Louis: Yeah, you’re gonna be late to school if you don’t get-wait a minute.  
Georges: Yo, I know you’re gay, but-  
Louis: Yeah! I got it, I got it, you two-eeeeugh.  
Emma: Is it a gay thing, or-  
Louis: No! It’s-it’s my baby sister, all grown up… 

(Louis ruffles Emma’s hair. Emma sticks out her tongue at him, her hand still holding Georges’ under the sheets.)

Emma: I’m OLDER than you by three months. And besides, all we did was cuddle.  
Louis: Liar.   
Georges: We promise.  
Louis: Well, it doesn't matter WHATEVER you too did. I’ve always been more mature, Emmy.  
Georges: Is this…my cue to leave?  
Emma: No! Please, stay, it’s OK.  
Louis: Actually, it’s NOT OK, because we all have school, and I don’t want Lavillant to destroy us, kay.  
Emma: You mean, you don’t want to miss your crush?  
Georges (aside to Emma): What do you mean?  
Emma (aside to Georges): You know how Paon and Yellowjacket fly by the school five minutes before the bell everyday?  
Georges (aside to Emma): Yeah, so? Wait a minute, you don’t mean-Louis-Yellowjacket-  
Louis: LIKE I SAID, WE’RE GOING TO BE LATE, OKAY?  
Georges: Can I have five minutes?  
Louis: *groans* Fine.

(Exit Louis.)

Emma: Why do you need five more minutes?  
Georges: No, no! I just need to think…you know how lucky I am to have you?  
Emma: Oh, come on, not this again. We’ve been dating since…god, since diapers. There’s no way that I wouldn’t have dated you.  
Georges: No, but…what if…what if we never got together?  
Emma: You’re stretching it too far. One thing I learned as an actor is that everybody has their role to play in life, and we’re scene partners in life, like it or not.  
Georges: But it’s like poetry too, y’know? If you want a poem to be in the certain way that you want it to, everything has to be perfect and together-the meter, the structure, the tone, the imagery. Life is like that too.  
Emma: What do you mean?  
Georges: What if something happened? Like your parents never got together, or my parents never got together? Your dad never rebels against Gabriel? Or if your mom hadn’t helped Master Fu across the street that day? Gabriel and Isabelle never get together, Grandma never leaves Martinique, Sabine never left Hong Kong, you never offer to get us frozen yogurt on our first date back when we were five-  
Louis (from offstage): Georges! Five minutes!  
Georges: That was thirty seconds!  
Louis (from offstage): No, five minutes before our train leaves!  
Georges: I think that’s our cue to go.  
Emma: Yeah. You think I’ll get dress-coded with a pair of sweatpants and a tank?  
Georges: I mean, that’s all I brought to your place, so I guess we’d be going to Bustier together.  
Emma: I’m so excited for that conversation.  
Georges: I’m so excited in general.

(Blackout.)


End file.
